Young Drafted by Minnesota Twins

Sunday, July 13, was the longest day of Quentin Young’s life.  

Not that long days are something new for Young. The Class of 2025 Oaks Christian graduate estimates that he spent between eight and ten hours a day on baseball training while being a student.  

“It was a lot of work, and some days I didn’t feel like doing it,” Young said. “But it was the work that I knew needed to be done to be a professional baseball player.”  

July 13 was the Major League Baseball New Player Draft. It was the day he’d find out if all the hard work would lead him to a professional baseball contract.  

The first round, aired nationally on ESPN, began at 3:00pm and dragged on as a made-for-television drama usually does. The first 43 picks took about two hours, while Young, surrounded by friends, family, and coaches on a ranch in Fillmore, was waiting for his phone to ring. 

“My agent and I were constantly talking, so I knew I was going to be drafted in the 40-60 range; it was just a matter of who was going to take me and when,” Young said. “It was stressful waiting the whole day.”  

His agent got the call from the Minnesota Twins asking if he’d be signable as the 54th overall pick. At that point, Young knew his dreams had come true. His baseball career was progressing into the professional ranks. 

“Once it all finally happened, I was really happy and finally able to relax,” Young said.

Moments later, at around 5:30pm, the rest of the world would find out when his name was called on MLB Network. The Minnesota Twins believed in Young enough to select him early in the second round.  

“I was happy for Quentin because of how much pressure he must have had on himself the day of the draft,” said Oaks Christian Baseball Coach Rick Hirtensteiner. “Really, I think his whole senior year, he was dealing with the stress to perform at a high level, with all eyes on him.”  

Young’s senior campaign was marked by Leko Field hosting a steady stream of MLB scouts. So much so, the Leko Field snack shack was introduced during baseball games this spring as “the highest rated snack shack by MLB scouts.”  

The question marks surrounding Young’s draft status grew after he struggled last summer with USA Baseball’s U18 Team.  

“He was a high-profile guy who didn’t have a great summer but came out and kept working and had a pretty good Fall and got rolling,” Hirtensteiner said.  “Then he had a monster spring.” 

His spring season began when he homered on a 3-1 hanging breaking ball in his first at-bat. That would balloon into a record-breaking senior season of 14 home runs, a .381 batting average, and 34 RBIs.  He was second in the state with home runs and 12th overall in the nation.  

“I really just wanted to be myself during my senior year and not try and overexaggerate myself by trying to do too much,” Young said of his senior season. “I learned a lot of good things here, but I’m ready to go learn new things.”  

Hirtensteiner emphasized competition during practice because he wanted to keep it light for Young and his teammates.  

“One of my goals for him was to be able to have as much fun as he possibly could playing with his friends and being able to enjoy the sport without it being a profession yet,” Hirtensteiner said. “I think the players that have been here have benefited from being able to see him and watch how hard he works every day.”  

Young flew out to Minnesota to sign his contract on July 23. He is awaiting his first professional assignment, where his path to the big leagues will begin.  

“He has some stuff to work on, obviously, but it’s going to be exciting to see what player he can become at the next level,” Hirtensteiner said. “He’s got the best raw tools of anyone I’ve ever seen, or coached, and the sky is the limit for him.”