Chris_Young_(outfielder)

Chris Young (outfielder)

Christopher Brandon Young (born September 5 1983 in Houston, Texas) is a center fielder for the Arizona Diamondbacks. In , he became the first rookie in Major League history to hit 30 home runs and steal 25 bases.

Young graduated from national powerhouse Bellaire High School (Bellaire, Texas). He broke his arm in the state playoffs during his senior year attempting to catch a fly ball hit by Elkins High School's Chad Huffman (currently an outfielder in the San Diego Padres organization).

Drafted by the Chicago White Sox in the 16th round of the MLB Draft, Young was traded to the Diamondbacks with Orlando Hernández and Luis Vizcaíno for Javier Vázquez and cash after the season.

Minor leagues

Young began showing his potential quickly in the minor leagues. In , he was an Appalachian League All-Star outfielder. In 2005, he was a Baseball America 1st team Minor League All-Star outfielder and the Chicago White Sox Minor League Player of the Year. In , he was a Triple-A All-Star outfielder and Baseball America 2nd team Minor League All-Star outfielder.

Major leagues

Arizona Diamondbacks

Young made his major league debut on August 18, 2006, and began the 2007 season as the Diamondbacks everyday center fielder. On August 17, 2007, against the Atlanta Braves, Young hit his 23rd home run of the year, setting a new Diamondbacks rookie record. He also became the 8th rookie to hit 20 home runs and steal 20 bases.

For the season, his 27 stolen bases led all NL rookies (13th in the NL overall), and his 32 home runs were enough for 2nd for NL rookies (behind Ryan Braun and tied for 10th overall). Among other statistical accomplishments, Young finished 2nd among NL rookies in extra base hits (64) and at bats (569), 3rd in runs (85), and 5th in runs batted in (68). He also batted .237 with a .295 on-base percentage, and led NL rookies by striking out 141 times.

Young was a unanimous selection to the 2007 Topps Major League Rookie All-Star Team as a result of the 49th annual Topps balloting of Major League managers. He finished fourth (10 points) in the vote for the 2007 NL Sporting News Rookie of the Year Award by 488 major league players and 30 managers , losing to Braun (128 points). He also lost out to Braun in the competition for the 2007 Baseball America Rookie of the Year Award, and in the Baseball Prospectus 2007 Internet Baseball NL Rookie of the Year Award, in which he came in 4th with 8 first place votes (versus 555 for Braun).