The Braves have added another option for left field, agreeing to a minor league deal with Eric Young Jr, the team announced Friday.
The 29-year-old brings speed -- he was the National League's stolen base leader in 2013 with 46 -- and strong defense, committing just one error in 130 chances last season with the Mets.
But the switch-hitter posted a career-worst .229 average with 16 extra-base hits and had a .299 on-base percentage in 2014. Young's best season at the plate came in 2012 with the Rockies when he was at .316/.377/.448 over 98 games.
Primarily a leadoff hitter, Young has hit .254/.321/.333 in that role, which includes 109 of his career 138 stolen bases.
Over a six-year career, Young has a .252/.320/.332 slash line and, in a potential platoon situation with Jonny Gomes in left field, could provide value vs. left-handed pitchers at the palte, against whom he's hit .261 in his career compared to .248 against righties.
Of course, where he can help the Braves the most is on the base paths. While B.J. Upton swiped 20 bases a year ago, the the only other players with more than six steals are all gone in Jason Heyward (20), Jordan Schafer (15), Emilio Bonifacio (12) and Justin Upton (eight).
With righties on the mound Young has been caught stealing just 18 times in 126 attempts, which included three in 31 tries in '14.
Along with Gomes, the Braves' depth chart for left field also includes Zoilo Almonte, Todd Cunningham and Cuban import Dian Toscano, a group that's low on experience.
Almonte has played in 47 major league games, while Cunningham has appeared in eight and Toscano is expected to start the year in Triple-A.
That makes Young, who has 1,589 plate appearances in 504 games with the Rockies and Mets intriguing, especially when you consider his 138 steals. In seasons in which he's had 198 or more at-bats, Young has never had less than 27 stolen bases.
