Lukas Young Hired to Take Over Pitching Coach Duties
WASHINGTON, Pa. (June 9) – The Washington Wild Things have hired Lukas Young to take over as the team’s pitching coach. Young, a former Wild Thing from 2022-2024, takes over in the role that Hector Nelo was in to start the season. Nelo is no longer with the organization, having left the team in late May.
Young spent three seasons with the Wild Things as a player, logging 34 career saves and 10 career victories as a Frontier League pitcher. A 2022 Frontier League midseason All Star, Young was 5-2 in 2022 with a 1.66 ERA in 38 appearances, having returned to pro ball following arm surgery. That season in 43.1 innings, he struck out 47 to just 14 walks with 22 hits allowed. The following year in 2023, he was 4-2 with a 4.36 ERA in 39 games from the pen. He logged 20 saves in 2022 and 14 in 2023. In 2023, he again worked 43.1 innings and struck out 37 to 10 walks.
Lukas only appeared in two games before missing the rest of the 2024 season with an injury. Those two games are the final two in his pro career, which dates to 2017 after he was selected in the 21st Round of the MLB Draft that year by the Boston Red Sox. After pitching in 2017 for the Mobile Rams (NAIA), where he was 8-4 in 15 games (14 starts) with a 2.63 ERA and 86 strikeouts to 18 walks in 92.1 innings, Young made his way to the Red Sox farm system and split time between Class-A Greenville and Low-A Lowell. In 2018, he spent the whole season with Greenville and then split time in 2019 in the Atlanta organization with Florida (A+) and Rome (A). In his minor league career, he racked up a total of 129.2 innings pitched with 127 strikeouts, working his way to a 4.79 MiLB ERA.
Young will head up the pitching staff, effective immediately, as the Wild Things ready for a series with the Schaumburg Boomers at home starting tomorrow night.
Washington returns home to start a seven-game in six-day homestand Tuesday with the opener against the West-leading Schaumburg Boomers. First pitch on Breast Cancer Awareness Night Tuesday presented by 84 Lumber with a special jersey auction is slated for 7:05 p.m. Secure your seats for the homestand at washingtonwildthings.com or at the Ticket Return Box Office at EQT Park.
