Young up Pearce on the bench?
The Baltimore Orioles have a lot of similar hitters, Nelson Cruz, Steve Pearce and Delmon Young are all right handed outfielders with power bats and limited defensive skills. I have gone over each players strengths and weaknesses before.
Right now it seems while Pearce is in a slump Young is hitting like he has all season… great. Finally it seems like Young is getting himself some decent playing time. Young is starting today and had several starts last week. Pearce has been on the bench for the past several games and while average is still at .289, his production has fallen off since the All-Star break. Pearce’s contributions should not go forgotten however because he was red hot for a solid month plus and really career the Orioles offense at some points.
Young has four home runs this season and is hitting .319 while playing off the bench and having seldom at bats. Young is limited in what he can do defensively and the Orioles have kept him out of the field for the most part. Keeping Young healthy has been difficult in the past.
It has been hard to find Young a place in the lineup because out of all the Orioles players he is the most limited defensively. Young can play the outfield at an average level but Buck Showalter loves great defenders. Right now I think Showalter will find a way to keep Young in the lineup. Young’s bat is just too valuable while Cruz and Cris Davis continue to struggle.
