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Princeton University Athletics
Draft Issues
June 05, 2000 | Baseball
June 5, 2000
The Pittsburgh Pirates have made their decision. Now it's decision time for Chris Young.
The Pirates drafted Young, perhaps the best Princeton athlete of his generation, in the third round of today's Major League Baseball draft. Young, a righthanded pitcher, was the 89th pick overall. Buster Small, the catcher who caught all of Young's collegiate games, was selected in the 28th round by the Toronto Blue Jays.
"It's something I've been dreaming about since I was a little kid," said Young from his home in Dallas. "I was trying not to be anxious once the draft started. I was very pleased. I didn't think I'd go as high as I did."
The 6' 11" Young recently completed his sophomore year at Princeton as a unanimous first-team All-Ivy selection in basketball and baseball.
Young was 5-0 with a 1.82 earned-run average this past season, when he led the Tigers to the Ivy League championship and the NCAA tournament. Young's 1.05 regular season ERA was the best in Division I. For his career, Young is 9-1 with a 1.64 ERA. Batters have hit .153 against him in his two years. He has allowed 13 extra base hits and one home run in his Tiger career.
Young became draft-eligible after this season because he turned 21 prior to June 1. He is now faced with the dilemma of signing a professional contract or returning to Princeton for his junior year.
This decision becomes twice as hard considering that Young would have to give up not only college baseball but also basketball at Princeton if he signs with the Pirates. Ivy League rules, unlike the rest of the NCAA, prohibit an athlete from playing any league sport once they have signed a professional contract.
"This is not a position I thought I'd be in so quickly when I came to Princeton," Young said. "It would be very hard for me to give up basketball, and it's going to be a very, very difficult decision. Either way, though, it's a win-win situation."
Young was the Ivy League Rookie of the Year in both sports his freshman year and a national freshman All-America in basketball. This past year he was a first-team All-Ivy basketball player and an honorable mention All-America, and he has been mentioned as a draft prospect in basketball as well in two years.
Young is on pace to finish his Princeton basketball career second all-time in scoring and assists, first in blocked shots and fourth in rebounding.
For now Young is scheduled to leave for the Cape Cod League, a prestigious summer baseball league in Massachusetts.
"I'm sure I'll talk to the Pirates soon," he said. "And then I'll consider my options."
A senior from Alpharetta, Ga., Small was the 838th overall pick and was taken in the 28th round by Toronto. The co-captain ended his senior season, the most productive of his career, with a .296 average and 18 RBIs. He hit a home run in the first game of the Ivy League championship series to put the Tigers on the board first and was named honorable mention All-Ivy.
Small ended the 2000 season with a five-game hitting streak and was 2 for 4 with a run scored in Princeton's 7-6 loss to the University of Houston in the first game of the NCAA tournament.
"Its pretty exciting. This is something that I always wanted to do since I was a little kid," Small said following the phone call informing him of the pick. "Four hard years of work have paid off for me. Its thrilling."