Delmon Young was traded to the Twins a little over 2 years ago. Right now, many say the Tampa Bay Rays fleeced the Twins. The Rays got Jason Bartlett, Matt Garza, and Eduardo Morlan for Delmon Young, Brendon Harris, and Jason Pridie. Morlan and Pridie weren't key parts of the trade. Both of them haven't done anything so far, and neither of them look like they will make a significant impact in the majors. Jason Bartlett has been amazing for the Rays at SS, batting a line of .320/.389/.490 in 2009. Matt Garza has also been great for the Rays so far, capping off the 2008 season with a ALCS MVP award.
With those two players being great so far, I am going to take a look at how Delmon Young has progressed in the last 2 years for the Twins.
In his second season for the Twins (2009), his line was .284/.308/.425. The line looks pretty much the same. One thing that isn't being looked at though, was his 1st half splits vs. his 2nd half splits. There was a marked improvement in his hitting. He started listening to the coaches for the first time at about the half way point. The key change that could be seen was his batting stance. In the first half of the season, he leaned back and put so much weight on his back foot that he was off balance. Because of that, he was having trouble not only getting the bat on the ball, but also had many more ground ball outs. Once he got to the second half of the season, he changed his stance to a slightly wider stance. He also didn't put all his weight on his back foot. The weight was divided equally. The result? A much higher BA, higher slugging, and half the amount of double plays.
Here is a look at his stats from the first half of the season to the second half:
Split | PA | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS | GDP | |
1st Half | 202 | 192 | 20 | 51 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 25 | 6 | 59 | .266 | .292 | .344 | .636 | 11 | |
2nd Half | 214 | 203 | 30 | 61 | 10 | 2 | 9 | 35 | 6 | 33 | .300 | .322 | .502 | .825 | 6 |
Home Runs:
Batting Average:
Slugging Percentage:
Double Plays: