Houston native, former Arizona/Oakland and now-free agent outfielder Chris Young said last night at Bo Porter's foundation dinner that he is interested in signing with the Astros.
Houston is definitely on the list. I have good vibes in Houston. I feel like I've always been able to play well here.
Porter was also Young's 3B coach in Arizona, so they have some history. But Young provides a lot of what the Astros already have - strikeouts and a low walk rate (he drew a walk 72 times total in 2012/13, in 738 plate appearances. He walked 80 times in 659 PAs in 2011) combined with the promise of power. And when Astros fans watched Young play at Minute Maid, he hit .333/.412/.733 in seven games, which is obviously an absurdly small sample size.
But 2013 was Young's career-low in OPS - hitting .200/.280/.379 in 107 games, the second season in a row he played fewer than 110 games. Ultimately this would be a buy-low type of deal, and hope for the best.
We didn't come out here to play tiddlywinks, son.
-Hal Smith
