Today we feature a former college baseball standout from Orange County, CA, who turned to country music after suffering a career-ending elbow injury. An artist who came out of nowhere in early 2016 to hit the top of the charts with his very first single.

2016 Stagecoach California's Country Music Festival - Day 2
Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for Stagecoach
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Brett Young was born and raised in Anaheim, Ca, the home of Angels, Ducks and Mickie Mouse. His singing career started completely by accident while he was still in high school, stepping in for an absent band singer at a worship meeting. He was offered a baseball scholarship by Ole Miss, after pitching his high school team to the regional championship his senior year, turning down the Tampa Bay Devil Rays and Minnesota Twins who were looking at drafting him. After one year at Ole Miss, Young wanted to be closer to home and pitched one season at Irvine Valley College before transferring to Fresno State University.

While pitching for the Bulldogs in 2003, Young suffered an elbow injury which would end his baseball career. After hearing Gavin DeGraw's 2004 album Chariot, Young decided to give music a try. In 2007 he released an independent selt-titled EP, followed by a second EP in 2011, Make Believe. He would release three full-length albums independently, starting with 2011's self-titled album, On Fire in 2012 and Broken Down in 2013. None of the album caught the attention of record companies or country radio.

2016 Stagecoach California's Country Music Festival - Day 2
Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for Stagecoach
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In early 2015 Brett packed his thing and moved from L.A. to Nashville. In August, he was signed by the Big Machine Label Group, releasing his debut, self-titled EP for the label in February of 2016. His debut single, "Sleep Without You" was released in April and met with favorable reviews. The single peaked at #2 on the Billboard country charts, selling over 270,000 copies. The follow-up single from the EP is in our spotlight today. Brett Young and "In Case You Didn't Know" is today's Catch of the Day, new music you haven't heard, but you'll wanna hear it again.

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