STARKVILLE — Paul Young will have to wait at least a year to make his debut for Mississippi State.
The right-handed pitcher, who was one of the nation’s most attractive junior college prospects in 2013, had Tommy John surgery on his throwing arm Tuesday and will miss the season.
Young had experienced severe arm soreness in the fall and earlier this year after leading Central Alabama Community College to a junior college national championship last spring. Young had a 2.44 ERA and 57 Ks in 55 1/3 innings last season. He completed his junior college career with a 140-pitch complete-game victory in the 2013 NJCAA National Championship game.
MSU pitching coach Butch Thompson shut down Young once he arrived in Starkville to help his arm recover. Young then experienced soreness in his arm leading up to the start of the season.
Dr. James Andrews, who is one of the nation’s most respected orthopedic surgeons, did the procedure Tuesday in Birmingham, Ala. He also performed shoulder surgery on MSU fifth-year senior Ben Bracewell.
The Cleveland Indians selected Young in the 21st round of the 2013 Major League Baseball First-Year Player draft.
The 6-foot-3, 205-pound right-hander was expected to compete for a weekend spot after choosing MSU over Florida, Florida State, Missouri, Ole Miss, and LSU.
Young is the second MSU pitcher in a month to have season-ending surgery. John Marc Shelly had a procedure following his outing Feb. 23 against Holy Cross.
Follow Matt Stevens on Twitter @matthewcstevens.
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