Young Jr.'s long-term role with the Mets

The Mets have kept an eye on Eric Young Jr. for the last few years, and when Colorado designated him for assignment last month, they saw it as an opportunity to bring him in for cheap. On June 18th, the team acquired him in exchange for pitcher Collin McHugh.

Since then, Young has hit .290 with a .368 on-base percentage in 21 games for the Mets. He has been a spark plug for this team, and his seven stolen bases have been a welcoming sight. 

"I love it here," Young told the New York Post. "It's a great bunch of guys. I see a lot of drive and fight in everybody and I think we're going to make it exciting in the second half."

Young's speed and aggressiveness has been something out of the ordinary for the Mets, who have lacked a true lead-off man since Jose Reyes two years ago. Granted, it's only been 21 games, but Young has shown Mets fans what he can provide, and it may be enough to keep him around for the long term. 

"He's the prototypical leadoff guy," teammate Marlon Byrd said of Young. " I'm just so glad we have him over here. He just never got that consistent playing time [In Colorado] and over here he's got the chance. He see's the opportunity and knows he's going to be out there every single day. He's showing what he can do."

As for Young's long-term role on the Mets, that remains to be seen. The 28 year old outfielder is out of options, so he cannot be removed from the 40 man roster without being placed on waivers. He is a free agent after the 2016 season, and at a good price of roughly $400-500k per season. 

One thing I love about Young is his aggressiveness. The Mets do not have much power in their lineup, so home runs will not be their main source of producing runs. Young is scrappy, and has an above average eye at the plate, thus making him a tough out for pitchers. He is also a switch hitter, which makes him an ideal leadoff guy for Terry Collins, who seems to love platooning his players.

The Mets do need power in their outfield, but if Young continues this production, they can forget about players like Jacoby Ellsbury and Shin Shoo-Choo this coming off-season, and focus more on corner outfielders. Nelson Cruz, Mike Morse, David Murphy, Corey Hart, and Hunter Pence could be considered for those corner outfield positions, as they all could be had for a relatively low price.

All in all, Young has been an excellent addition by Sandy Alderson, and hopefully he continues to shine in New York. As a cost-controlled, relatively young, speedy outfielder, Young is the ideal player for the Mets to have right now, but time will tell what his long-term role will be in New York.