Mowrystown, Ohio native Kip Young has had a storied life in baseball. He holds still-standing records playing for the Bowling Green State University baseball team and even stood on the mound at Tigers Stadium to face MLB Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson.

“I grew up on a farm so the only thing we had to do was get together with the neighbor kids and play baseball,” he said.

Young began playing around the age of six ,and while it was clear that he had a knack for baseball, he also excelled at basketball.

“I thought I was a little better at basketball than baseball growing up. But once I got to college, I realized how hard it was to guard someone who is both quick and 6 feet 4 inches, so I decided to focus on baseball,” said Young.

Young was recruited by many coaches who wanted him to play for them in college. However, an experience with BGSU coach Don Purvis sealed the deal.

“I had a full ride to Morehead without them even watching me pitch. But they were in the NAIA at the time and I wanted to go Division I,” said Young.

Young was playing in Hillsboro, Ohio on the legion baseball team when he caught the eyes of many scouts.

“Coach Purvis watched me pitch in an all-star game where I kept a no-hitter going into the eighth inning,” he said. “He was the only coach that stayed after the game and he told me he wanted to see me throw again and the next time he saw me, I threw a one-hitter and he gave me a scholarship.”

Young takes off at BGSU

While at BGSU, Young had a 37-5 career record, 232 career strikeouts and was one of the top 20 college baseball players in the country in 1974 to 1975. His career wins and strikeouts are still the most of all time at BGSU. 

Young also still has the best statistical season of any BGSU pitcher when he went 10-1 with a 1.02 ERA in 1974. His ERA was the fifth best in the entire nation.

A teammate of Young’s during their time on the BGSU baseball team, Dick Selgo, spoke about what it was like being on the field with Young on the mound. 

“There was an all around feeling of confidence. We knew he was going to keep the other team in check and put us in a good position to win the game,” said Selgo.

“Young was anxious to learn and very confident,” said Former BGSU Baseball Head Coach Don Purvis.

Purvis continued with a tale about his time coaching Young. To set the scene, it was the last inning and there were two runners on the bases with two outs as their star hitter stepped to the plate.

“I went out and told Kip that we could walk the batter if he wanted to. Kip looked at me and said, ‘I was planning on striking him out.’ And he did just that and won us the game.”

Young struggles within the MLB

Young’s experience in getting drafted into Major League Baseball (MLB) didn’t quite go as planned.

“It was disappointing,” said Young. “I was expecting to go in the top five or ten rounds but didn’t get selected until the 23rd round.”

Young kept his head down and continued to work on his craft, speeding through two years in the Minor Leagues, before making his way to the Majors.

Young started off hot, winning his first four MLB games as well as going the distance in all four en route to seven complete games in 1978.

“I was throwing too many innings and it showed by the end of the season. I just wasn’t throwing as well as I had at the start of the year,” Young said.

In his second season with the Detroit Tigers, he played under a new manager, Sparky Anderson, and things weren’t the same.

“I had a lot of bad luck in ’79,” Young said. “I was the number two starter coming into the season. When it came time for my first start, we were snowed out and I didn’t get to throw until it was my time again in the order. But then that game got rained out and I had to wait another 5 days which really hurt,” Young said. 

“I only ended up pitching twice in that month and struggled to recover,” Young said. 

After his second season in the MLB, Young played three more seasons in the Minor Leagues.

“Once I was sold to Seattle, I hit a rough patch of luck,” he said. “I pitched really well in spring training and was supposed to make a start against the Milwaukee Brewers, but, the day before, the MLB went on strike.”

After his stint with the Seattle Mariners, Young was signed by the Cincinnati Reds and impressed their Minor League staff and was scheduled to make a start for the Reds.

Young never got another chance at the Majors despite playing well due to another MLB strike. 

When asked if there was anything he would change about his career, Young said, “I feel that if I would have chosen to come out of the bullpen instead of being a starter, I could’ve had some longevity in the MLB.”

Young obtained his degree during his time at BGSU which allowed him to teach while he was playing baseball in the off-season. It also allowed him to transition to a full-time elementary school teacher for 30 years. He now sells cars in Hillsboro. 

“I was very lucky to be in the right places at the right times. I was able to perform well when I needed to and was always surrounded by a lot of talent that helped me get to where I was,” Young said.