3 early NY Mets minor free signings that will matter most in 2025

2) Jared Young

When the Mets signed infielder Jared Young to a split contract they indicated some belief that he could contribute in the Majors in 2025. The nature of the split contract signals that they believe he could be useful to the big league club and thus opted to give him some level of security over what a standard minor league deal could offer.

While the former Cubs' and Cardinals' farm hand has only compiled 69 mostly forgettable plate appearances at the big league level, he's shown some promise with the bat during his lengthy minor league career.

Over four AAA seasons, he's tallied 1258 plate appearances while posting a .268/.367/.485 slash line and 54 homers indicating some ability to draw walks and hit for power. Perhaps more impressive were the numbers he put up after moving to Korea last season.

With the KBO's Doosan Bears, the 29-year-old Young posted a 1.080 OPS with 10 homers in 38 games. Again, like the Venezuelan Winter League, the KBO isn't the top competition overseas, however, such an impressive performance over there cannot be ignored.

Young also provides intriguing positional versatility. A first baseman by trade, he can also play second, third, and both corner outfield spots. The Mets currently don't have a first baseman on the Major League roster, though that will certainly change before the start of Spring Training.

More important is that versatility he provides with trade rumors swirling around the Mets current crop of utility infielders – Jeff McNeil, Luisangel Acuna, and Ronny Mauricio. A trade that relieves that bottleneck could open a pathway for Young to get Major League playing time, and if he gets the opportunity he may show that he can translate some of his plate discipline and power to the Bigs while covering a variety of positions.