Jacob Young had the walk-off hit for the Nationals in Wednesday night’s win over the Mets, and then he got to talk about it with Grant & Danny on Thursday afternoon!
And, as you might expect, the rookie was still feeling like he was dreaming.
“It's one of those moments as a kid, you always kind of put yourself in those situations, playing in the backyard or with some friends,” Young said. “To be able to have it kind of happen in real life, I guess you could say it was a dream come true. I was just real happy that I could get the job done and help us get a win there.”
Young, a seventh-round pick in 2021, was called up on August 26 after just a few days at Triple-A, so his 11 games in the Majors entering Thursday were a huge jump after starting the season at High-A Wilmington. However, he hit over .300 at both High-A and Double-A and had a .376 OBP in the minors, so coming through and getting on base is nothing new this year.
“In those moments, just try to control my breathing, slow down everything, and just kind of go straight back to the plan, with the pitcher. Just think about what he's trying to do to me and kind of what I'm looking for,” Young said. “I just wanted something up, to try to drive something to the outfield. He left a couple of pitches up early, missed them both, and once I had the two strikes, I knew if I could just get the ball in play, good things could happen. Luckily he left another pitch up and I was able to sneak one through the middle.”
The knock marked the second straight multi-hit game for Young, who has become the everyday centerfielder and even got a turn in the leadoff spot with C.J. Abrams off on Tuesday. Once again, not bad for a seventh-round pick who was a back-end Top 30 prospect and finished 2022 in Low-A ahead of what has been a whirlwind season.
“Yeah, it’s been a wild year after spending the whole year in Fredericksburg last year, kind of getting to know what pro baseball is all about, learning how to be a pro and how to get through a full season, that helped a lot,” Young said. “This year, my goal was just to play well and try to show that I can hit in professional baseball and belong, play multiple positions and just kind of whatever they need. I got off to a really hot start and it kind of carried through, and I'm just grateful that they gave me the opportunity to show that what I can do all the way up to the big leagues.”
Young’s hallmark was as a “speed and defense” guy, with the former rated as plus-plus, and he gave himself the fun comp of former Nat Trea Turner in that respect – “fast, plays hard, always gets you the extra base and can do it all on the bases and on defense.”
Grant questions who would win in a race between Young (91 steals in two seasons) and C.J. Abrams, who has swiped 40 bags and “can scoot” according to the rookie…but he’s learning a lot from Abrams, and from himself, about how speed can only get you so far.
“Smart base running, especially when you get up here, is more important than speed,” Young said. “Being speedy kind of throughout my whole life, it’s something I’ve always had, but I’ve looked more into the art of base running and making sure you are trusting your instincts. Speed can help you a lot of times, but if you don't get the right read or you don't get the good jump, it doesn't matter how fast you are. Good base running, especially when you get up here, is more important.”
Take a listen to Young’s entire convo with the guys above!
