Daniel Welch is a pitcher

Pitcher

In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...

 for Brigham Young University

Brigham Young University

Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...

's baseball

Baseball

Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...

 team. He was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico

New Mexico

New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...

, but grew up in Florida

Florida

Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...

, Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

, and Utah

Utah

Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...

. Welch was a three year starter for Danny Schoonover at Lone Peak High School

Lone Peak High School

Lone Peak High School is a public high school located in Highland, Utah, in northern Utah County. Its mascot is a knight. Part of Alpine School District, it was built in 1997 to meet the growing needs of the cities of Alpine, Highland, and Cedar Hills...

 in Highland, Utah

Highland, Utah

Highland is a city in Utah County, Utah, United States. It is approximately thirty miles from Salt Lake City and is part of the Provo–Orem, Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area. According to the 2010 census the population was 15,523, a 90.0% increase over the 2000 figure of 8,172...

. He tossed a two-hiiter in his final regular season game against Pleasant Grove High School

Pleasant Grove High School (Utah)

Pleasant Grove High School is a public high school located in Pleasant Grove, Utah.- History :Pleasant Grove High School was established in 1912. It started in a small one-room building. Additional rooms were eventually added on due to the increasing number of students. The former location was...

. Welch went on to lead the Knights to a first round win against Bingham High School

Bingham High School

Bingham High School, located in the Jordan School District, is one of the oldest schools in Utah. It celebrated its centennial on September 9, 2008. It serves 2,495 students in South Jordan.-Student Government History:...

 in the state playoffs. Welch was named as a 5A All-State pitcher and went on to lead the 5A All-Star team to victory as well as being named the MVP of the event. He was also named All-Valley and All-Region IV. He finished his senior season at Lone Peak with a then-record 70 strikeouts in 53 innings. He signed to play collegiately for BYU.

At BYU, Welch appeared in 14 games for the Cougars, starting four games as a true freshman. He struck out 17 batters in 19 1/3 innings and had a record of 0-2 with a 9.78 ERA

Earned run average

In baseball statistics, earned run average is the mean of earned runs given up by a pitcher per nine innings pitched. It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number of innings pitched and multiplying by nine...

.

Following his freshman season, Welch left to serve an LDS Church mission to Curitiba

Curitiba

Curitiba is the capital of the Brazilian state of Paraná. It is the largest city with the biggest economy of both Paraná and southern Brazil. The population of Curitiba numbers approximately 1.75 million people and the latest GDP figures for the city surpass US$61 billion according to...

, Brazil

Brazil

Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...

. He is scheduled to return July 2010.

He is also an Eagle Scout

Eagle Scout (Boy Scouts of America)

Eagle Scout is the highest rank attainable in the Boy Scouting program of the Boy Scouts of America . A Scout who attains this rank is called an Eagle Scout or Eagle. Since its introduction in 1911, the Eagle Scout rank has been earned by more than 2 million young men...

and is majoring in business. He was tutored by former BYU lefty Todd Newman.

Sources