Jason Kariya Young...originally selected by Texas in the 29th round of the 1997 June
draft, but opted to go to Stanford...a 1997 graduate of Berkeley (Calif.) High School, he was All-America
as a senior and won two team MVP honors...signed by Tom Wheeler.
2004
Did not pitch after May 21 due to a stress fracture of the seventh rib on his right side...began
the season with Colorado Springs (AAA) where he made seven starts before being recalled by the Rockies
on May 16...unfortunately, the right-hander started only two games for the Rox before landing on the disabled
list for the remainder of the season...suffered the injury as he was warming up for his May 21st start
at Shea Stadium...he still pitched 3.0 innings that night, allowing 6 runs on 8 hits over 3.0 innings in a 9-7
loss...was placed on the 15-day disabled list the following day (May 22) and later transferred to the 60-day
DL June 17, missing a total of 121 games...JY was Colorado Springs' Opening Day starter for the second
straight year, winning each of his first four starts to begin the season...in seven starts overall with the Sky
Sox, Jason went 5-2 with a 4.73 ERA...at the time of his recall, his 5 wins tied for the Pacific Coast League lead and also matched Jeff Francis for most in the farm system...made his Rockies debut May 16 vs.
Philadelphia, and gave up 6 runs over 5.1 innings in a no decision (Rox won 7-6).
2003
Just over two years after making his pro debut (two years, one month and four days to be exact), Jason was making his major league debut with the Rockies on May 12, 2003...although he spent most of 2003 at Colorado Springs (AAA), Young did have three stints with the big league club throughout the season...originally called-up May 12, Jason got the start that night in his ML debut vs. the Mets...suffered a 9-6 losing decision, allowing 5 runs on 8 hits over 5.0 innings...had a no decision in his next start May 17 vs. Montreal (5.2 ip, 3 er) and was then optioned back to Triple A on May
22...recalled again July 2 and appeared in one game out of the bullpen July 3 vs. Arizona...gave up just 1 run in 4.0 innings and went 2-for-2 at the plate with a double off Brandon Webb...was sent back down following the game...recalled for the third and final time on Sept. 5, JY made five appearances throughout the month of September, including one start on Sept. 13...struggled in his last stint with the club...after joining the Rockies on Sept. 5, Young
allowed 13 runs (11 earned) in only 6.2 innings for a 14.85 ERA...was tagged for 6 runs, 5 earned, in just 1.1 innings of his last start on Sept. 13 at Bank One...overall, the former Stanford All-American was 0-2 with a 8.44 ERA in eight big league contests, three starts...gave up 34 hits in his 21.1 innings with the opposition batting .354 (34-for-96, 8 home runs)...did strike out 18 as opposed to 9 walks...in a starting role, the right-hander was 0-2 with a
9.75 ERA (12.0 i p, 13 er)...posted a 6.75 ERA in relief (9.1 ip, 7 er), while retiring just 1 of his 5 first batters faced...finished 6-7 with a 3.95 ERA and 2 complete games (one shutout) in 21 starts and two relief appearances at AAA-Colorado Springs (116.1 ip, 51 er)...his ERA ranked 12th among Pacific Coast League qualifiers...pitched much better at the hitter-friendly Sky Sox stadium, going 4-2 with a 3.61 ERA at home (47.1 ip, 19 er) compared to just
a 2-5, 4.17 mark on the road (69.0 ip, 32 er)...battled a pulled muscle in his lower back that hampered him for much of August...went 0-2 with a 9.64 ERA during the month, working only 4.1 combined innings in his final three starts...subtract that from his year-end totals and Jason would have been 6-5 with a 3.45 ERA (107.0 ip, 41 er)...was very consistent up till that point, posting a 3.42 ERA in April, 3.20 in May, 3.82 in June and 3.41 in July...Colorado
Springsb Opening Day starter, Jason earned the victory in the season opener April 3 at Oklahoma (5.0 ip, 6 h, 3 er)...that propelled him to a fast start in which he went 3-1 with a 3.82 ERA before being called-up by the big league club on May 12...continued his winning ways after he returned to the Sky Sox and all-in-all, was 4-1 over his first six starts and one relief appearance...on June 13 at New Orleans, JY tossed a 4-hit shutout in a 5-0 victory over the Zephyrs...did not walk a batter and struckout 5 in his 9.0-inning complete game performance...also had a rain-shortened 5.0-inning complete game
earlier on May 26 vs. Edmonton (7-2 win).
2002
Young continued his quick climb up the organization ladder, beginning the year in Double-A before making the jump to Triple-A in mid-June...combined at the two levels, Jason was 13-9 with a 3.74 ERA (168.1 ip, 70 er), walking 68 while striking out an organizational-best 150 batters...was a mid-season Southern League All-Star with AA-Carolina, going 7-4 with a 2.64 ERA (88.2 ip, 26 er) in 14 starts...at AAA-Colorado Springs, the righty was 6-4, 4.97 ERA (79.2 9 ip, 44 er)...opened his Double-A career with a 21.0 scoreless innings streak over his first three starts...recorded wins over Huntsville in back-to-back outings to begin the year, allowing just 6 hits and no earned runs in 15.0 ip...finally gave up a run in the seventh inning of his third start, April 18 vs. Greenville...was the Rockies Minor League Pitcher of the Month for April, going 4-1 with a 0.79 ERA (34.0 ip, 3 er)...then went 3-3 in his last nine starts, posting a 3.79 ERA (54.2 ip, 23 er)...held the opposition to a .219 average as a member of the Carolina rotation...was promoted to Colorado Springs on June 21...earned the victory in his Triple A debut, June 22 vs. Las Vegas (5.0 ip, 3 r, 1 er)...struggled in the early going, posting a 3-4 record in his first eight starts, while allowing 33 earned runs in 46.1 ip (6.41 ERA)...rebounded down the stretch to go 3-1 with a 2.97 ERA (33.1 ip, 11 er) in his last five outings...fanned 11 in his final start, a win on Augl 29 vs. Iowa...also participated in the All-Star Futures Game at Miller Park in Milwaukee on July 7...was USA's starting pitcher in the game, tossing a scoreless inning with 2 strikeouts.
2001
Jason made his pro debut with High-A Salem, compiling a 6-7 record with a 3.44 ERA (104.2 ip, 40 er) in 17 starts prior to injuring his elbow in July...tied for first in the Carolina League in shutouts (1) and fifth in complete games (2)...notched his first professional shutout on May 5 vs. Wilmington, a 6-hitter with 9 strikeouts...recorded a season-high 12 strikeouts on July 4 at Lynchburg...made his last start of the year on July 12 against Winston-Salem (7.0 ip, 9 h, 3 er) before a tender right elbow forced him out for the remainder of the season...did return to pitch in the Arizona Fall League...following the season, Baseball America ranked him ninth in its Top 10 prospects of the Carolina League.
COLLEGE
Compiled a 21-5 record with 327 strikeouts in three seasons for the Stanford Cardinal (1998-2000)...in 2000, the first-team preseason All-American went 9-1 with a 3.73 ERA (115.2, 48 er) in 19 starts...fired 3 complete ames, walked 42, fanned 120 and held opponents to a .224 average...started the National championship game at the College World Series (4.0 9 ip, 4 h, 2 r, 2 er, 1 bb, 2 k) and left with the lead until LSU came from behind to win 6-5...a consensus All-American as a sophomore, he was also first team all-Pac-10 and his teammates voted him MVP...overall, he was 12-3 with a 3.43 ERA, setting a single-season school mark with a conference-leading 178 strikeouts and 154.2 innings...tossed 2 shutouts and 10 complete games in 21 starts
