After signing a two-year contract in December of 2015, Chris Young did exactly what the Red Sox wanted him to do in 2017 – rake against left-handed pitchers.
The 33-year-old did well overall last season (.276 average, 120 OPS+), but slashed .329/.410/.589 against southpaws with a 135 OPS+. While he did what was asked of him, Farrell struggled to find Young time in the lineup against favorable matchups. Partly because of a hamstring injury that cost him nearly two months and partly because the Red Sox faced consistent strings of right-handed pitchers. As a result, he had just 83 plate appearances against lefties compared to 144 against righties.