Eastern’s Derek Young learns to “Pitch Perfect”

This archived article was written by: Nisheal Watson

Nisheal Watson
sports writer
[email protected]
Derek Young, Carbon High School graduate and USU Eastern freshman, was recruited for the baseball team this year. His preferred position is pitcher, followed by first base. But the amazing aspect is that Young can still play baseball at all. A few years ago, Young had two plates and 13 screws wedged into his left arm.
All through high school, Young played sports: four years of baseball, basketball and golf. His baseball career began way back with little league. Later he joined travel teams and played for three years in the American Legion.
His junior year in high school, Young broke his arm playing basketball. Carbon Dino fans were devastated. No one could possibly fill in for “dunking D,” the center- forward. Doctors inserted two plates and 13 screws in his left arm to fix the problem. He still has the scar to prove it.
Miracles never cease. Young recovered. His arm still functions.
Young was pitcher in high school. After receiving a “metal arm,” he had to get used to catching the ball again. It was a little different at first, but he got the hang of it. Now he isn’t even phased when he catches. Not to mention he throws a mean fastball.
In high school, Young received honorable mention statewide. He was also on team two for All- American Region baseball.
Where does he get his inspiration? He explained, “My parents. My family is so supportive.” Right now Young is continuing to live at home with his parents. He has one older sister that has moved away. Young expressed, “I’m close to my immediate family. You know, aunts and uncles too.”
He does not plan to play professional baseball. “I want to focus on academics after playing at USU Eastern,” explained Young. He didn’t even need a baseball scholarship because of his academic scholarship. “He has a drive for excellence,” commented Chantz Richens. “It’s really apparent in everything he does: sports, AP calculus, etcetera. He was always seeing ways to improve.” Young is thinking about pursuing engineering as his career.
He is definitely a team player. He always attends practice and has a good attitude. “The way a team plays as a whole determines its success. You may have the greatest bunch of individual stars in the world, but it they don’t play together, the club won’t be worth a dime,” was one of Babe Ruth’s bits of wisdom Young lives by.
Sarah Barnett stated, “I like [Derek’s] positive attitude and that he doesn’t get cocky.” He works well with his teammates and coaches.
George Deeter, previous girl’s basketball manager at Carbon High School, admitted, “He was able to compete alongside the same group of guys for several years and they worked together probably better than any group I’ve seen.”