FROM WORST TO WORSE: MAYOS’ YOUNG HURT, LEAVES NAVOJOA

In what has already been a long season for the moribund Navojoa Mayos, the Mexican Pacific League team took yet another hit when perhaps their best player left the team for health reasons.

Outfielder Matt Young, who was leading the Mayos in seven offensive categories, went home after hurting himself legging out a hit in a December 5 game against Mazatlan. Navojoa team president Victor Cuevas said in a telephone interview that in a subsequent MRI on Young, “we saw something bad,” adding that Young told him “he’s already had two consecutive years without rest, and he felt tired.”

At the time of his departure, the 28-year-old Young was second to Los Mochis’ Justin Christian in the LMP batting race with a .358 average. A 5’8” Texan, Young played last summer for the Braves’ AAA affiliate in Gwinnett, batting .300 with 88 runs and 39 stolen bases in 134 International League games. Gwinnett PR director Nick Margiasso says Young is mostly worn down with various bumps and bruises, adding that he is essentially "A-OK" and will be ready for spring training in February.

The Mayos finished a distant last in the Mex Pac’s first half and their aggregate 17-36 record is worst in the league. Attendance has been no better. While 1,092,299 fans have attended LMP games so far this season, only 31,643 of them have clicked the turnstiles in Navojoa.