Michael Young

Michael Brian Young (born October 19, 1976) is an American former professional baseball infielder who played 14 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Texas Rangers, Philadelphia Phillies, and Los Angeles Dodgers.

He was originally drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in 1994, but elected to return to college and was eventually drafted in 1997 by the Toronto Blue Jays.

After spending several seasons in the minor leagues with the Blue Jays, Young was traded to the Rangers, where he spent over a decade.

While with the Rangers, Young set several club records in offensive statistical categories, including runs scored and total bases.

Young was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the 25th round of the 1994 Major League Baseball draft but did not sign.

Three years later the Toronto Blue Jays selected him in the fifth round of the 1997 Major League Baseball draft.

Young made his professional debut in 1997 with the St. Catharines Blue Jays in the New York–Penn League (NY-Penn) (short-season A).

Among his achievements in the NY-Penn League were a 16-game hitting streak, tying for fifth in the league with 48 RBIs, and tying for third in the league with 136 total bases.

In 1998, he spent the season with the Hagerstown Suns of the South Atlantic League.

Playing second base, he led all players at his position in fielding percentage.

1999 would be an all-star season for Young.

Playing for the Dunedin Blue Jays of the Florida State League, he earned spots on both the midseason and postseason all star teams by leading the league in doubles and finishing fourth in batting average and hits, .313 and 155 respectively.

After the regular season, he played for the Rancho Cucamonga Surfers in the California Fall League.

Young signed with the Blue Jays, who traded him in 2000 with pitcher Darwin Cubillán to the Rangers for Esteban Loaiza while Young was still in their minor league system.

He split 2000 between Double-A and Triple-A and, on July 19, was traded to the Rangers with Darwin Cubillán for Esteban Loaiza.

The Rangers purchased his contract on September 27 and he played the final five games of the season in the majors making his debut as a pinch runner.

Young reached the Majors briefly in 2000, playing 2nd and getting two at-bats.

Though he began 2001 in Triple-A, he was recalled to the majors on May 25 and did not return to the minors at all during the season.

He hit .249 in 106 games as a second baseman in 2001.

In 2002, Young placed second in fielding among second basemen with a .988 fielding percentage.

In 2003, Young was 3rd in the league in hits with 204, and led all second baseman with a batting average of .306.

Young had a fielding percentage of .987.

After signing a new contract, Young moved to shortstop, filling the hole left by the departure of regular Ranger's shortstop Alex Rodriguez in 2004, to make room for newly acquired second baseman Alfonso Soriano.

He was second in the American League in hits with 216 and at bats with 690, fourth in runs with 114, and ninth in batting with an average of .313.

He was the 2005 American League (AL) batting champion.

Young played baseball in high school at Bishop Amat Memorial High School and in college at University of California, Santa Barbara (UC-Santa Barbara).

Young won the AL batting title in 2005 with an average of .331, and was first in MLB in hits with 221.

He was second in AL in at bats with 668, and his 114 runs were fifth-best in the AL. Young also established a career-high in home runs with 24.

Young's 91 RBIs placed him second among all shortstops in the AL.

On February 14, 2006, Young and Rangers teammate Mark Teixeira were selected to the United States roster for the 2006 World Baseball Classic.

At the conclusion of the 2006 MLB All-Star Game held at PNC Park in Pittsburgh, Young was awarded the Major League Baseball All-Star Game MVP Award after hitting a game-winning two-run triple in the ninth inning.

Young led the American League in fielding percentage at shortstop with .981.

Young also played all 162 games of the 2006 season, had 217 hits and topped 100 RBI for the first time in his career.

In March 2007, Young agreed to an $80 million contract extension that would have kept him with the Rangers until 2013.

He spent 89 games hitting in the leadoff spot, the last time in his career that he hit leadoff prior to 2013.

Since 2014, Young has worked in the Rangers’ front office as a Special Assistant to the General Manager.

Originally a second baseman, the versatile Young was a five-time All-Star at shortstop, once at third base, and once as a combination designated hitter / utility infielder.

In 2016, Young was inducted into the Texas Rangers Hall of Fame.

In 2019, Young's No. 10 was retired by the Rangers.

Young attended Bishop Amat Memorial High School in La Puente, California, followed by the University of California, Santa Barbara, to which he later donated money to refurbish the school's baseball field.