Prince George ballplayer Jared Young heads to Korea

Jared Young started the week as a member of the Memphis Redbirds and ended it halfway around the world as the newest player for the Doosan Bears in South Korea.

Young, 29, is a Prince George native who's carved out a career in baseball in the U.S. This is all new, but it was always on his radar.

He said he's been interested in the thriving South Korean baseball scene for some time.

"I knew it was something I wanted to do," he told The Citizen. "I just didn't know when it would happen."

When it did happen, it was sudden.

The utility player said he was set to head out on a road swing with the Redbirds, a Triple-A International League affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals, on Tuesday when he was taken aside and given the news.

"They told me not to travel with the team," he said.

He had no inkling that the deal was in the works, but he's relieved. After some uncertainty about his future in the last off-season, he said, he's happy to go to the Bears and make his mark.

There was only one hitch, he noted: His gear had already been sent on the road with the Redbirds, so he had to wait for it to come back before he could fly to South Korea, with a stop in Japan to get his visa situation sorted out.

But he arrived safely and is set for his first game in a Bears uniform.

The 10-team KBO league has been described in Western media as being somewhere between AA and AAA American ball, but Young says that isn't the case.

"It's on a level with MLB," he said. The league plays a 144-game schedule, on par with the American and National leagues, and there's an all-star game each season.

KBO teams are allowed to have up to three international players on the roster.

Young is filling one of those roles. He'll be one of two Canadians on the team, something he said is a first for the KBO.

The other is Jordan Balazovic, a pitcher from Mississauga who was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the fifth round, 153rd overall, in 2016.

Young joins a team that was founded in 1982 as one of the league's original franchises and has won six Korean Series titles since.

They play their home games in Seoul's Jamsil Baseball Stadium, at 25,000 the highest-capacity field in the KBO League. Other teams include the Hanwha Eagles, Kia Tigers, Kiwoom Heroes, KT Wix, LG Twins, Lotte Giants, NC Dinos, Samsung Lions and SSG Landers.

Young said the team has him set up in an apartment in Seoul's Gangnam District, and he's looking forward to discovering more about South Korean life and culture.

This is the latest stop on a long baseball journey. Young went to Prince George Secondary School and Kelowna Secondary School, and went to Minot State University in North Dakota to play for the Beavers in his freshman year. He then transferred to Connors State College in Oklahoma, playing there and graduating before heading to Old Dominion University in Virginia to play for the Monarchs.

He was drafted by the Chicago Cubs in the 15th round, 465th overall, in 2017. His pro career has included stints with several minor-league teams, including the Eugene Emeralds, the Iowa Cubs and the Tennessee Smokies, among others. The Chicago Cubs brought him up in 2022 for his major-league debut.

The Cardinals claimed him off waivers in 2023 and sent him to the Redbirds, where he played 74 games. He signed a $300,000 contract with Doosan on Wednesday, July 24.

While he played in the Dominican Republic, this will be his first trip overseas. He knows that, as a westerner in a new country, there will be a period of adjustment. But, he said, baseball crosses international borders.

"Be a good guy, play a good game, you make friends pretty quick," he said.

NOTE: Young's mother Dana is on the Citizen's staff. She's already talking about plans to visit him in South Korea soon.