Luke Heimlich
Heimlich with Oregon State in 2015
Free agent
Pitcher
Born: (1996-02-03) February 3, 1996
Puyallup, Washington, U.S.
Bats: Left
Throws: Left
Career highlights and awards

Luke Andrew Heimlich (born February 3, 1996) is an American baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He attended Oregon State University and played college baseball for the Oregon State Beavers. He was named the Collegiate Pitcher of the Year in 2018. Following the publication of his criminal record for child molestation, he went undrafted by all MLB teams.

Career

Heimlich attended Puyallup High School in Puyallup, Washington, and played for the school's baseball team as a pitcher and as a first baseman.[1] In 2014, his senior year, Heimlich had an 11–0 win–loss record with a 0.66 earned run average (ERA).[2] He won the Gatorade Player of the Year for the state of Washington.[1]

Heimlich enrolled at Oregon State University to play college baseball for the Oregon State Beavers as a pitcher.[3] In 2017, he was named to the Golden Spikes Award watch list.[4] In 2017, his junior year, he led the nation with a 0.81 ERA and was named the Pac-12 Conference's Pitcher of the Year.[5] After revelations from his personal life became public in 2017, he left the team for the remainder of the season, missing the 2017 College World Series.[6] He went unselected in the 2017 MLB draft.[7] He returned to the Beavers in 2018.[8] Though he had pitched to a 15–1 win–loss record with a 2.42 ERA prior to the 2018 MLB draft, and was again named the Pac-12 Conference's Pitcher of the Year, Heimlich was not selected.[9] After the draft, Heimlich won the National Pitcher of the Year Award.[10] His school record for strikeouts in a season (159) lasted until Cooper Hjerpe broke it in 2022.

On August 7, 2018, the Lamigo Monkeys of the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) announced the signing of Heimlich to a professional contract.[11][12] The CPBL did not allow the contract to take effect due to his criminal record.[13][14]

Tecolotes de los Dos Laredos

In March 2019, Heimlich reached an agreement with the Tecolotes de los Dos Laredos of the Mexican League.[15] The league's president indicated that the agreement may not be approved.[16] However, the team was given authorization to go forward with the signing on April 6, 2019, and Heimlich was assigned to the team. He made his professional debut with Dos Laredos on April 9.[17][18] Heimlich pitched to an 8–7 record and 4.58 ERA in 21 appearances for the Tecolotes in 2019. Heimlich did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the Mexican League season because of the COVID-19 pandemic.[19] He later became a free agent.

Personal life

Heimlich is the second youngest of eight children born to Meridee and Mark Heimlich. His mother is a social worker and his father works in construction.[20]

When he was 15 years old, Heimlich was accused of sexually molesting his six-year-old niece on two occasions, once when she was four years old and once when she was six years old.[20] On August 27, 2012, he pleaded guilty to a single count of child molestation in the first degree.[20] This adjudication came to the public's attention in 2017 due to a clerical error in which the Oregon State Police believed that he had failed to update his registration as a sex offender.[2][21] After the conviction was made public in 2017, Heimlich wrote, "I have taken responsibility for my conduct when I was a teenager."[7] However, in 2018, Heimlich denied the allegations, saying that he pleaded guilty to "quickly dispense with the case and for the sake of family relations."[8] The record was sealed in 2017.

References

  1. 1 2 "Puyallup's Luke Heimlich is Gatorade Washington Baseball Player of the Year". The Seattle Times. May 27, 2014. Retrieved May 8, 2018.
  2. 1 2 Price, S.L. (May 18, 2018). "Prospect and Pariah". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved June 6, 2018.
  3. ↑ "Heimlich blossoms into Beavers' ace". Bendbulletin.com. March 23, 2017. Retrieved May 8, 2018.
  4. ↑ "Luke Heimlich, Nick Madrigal make Golden Spikes Award midseason watch list". OregonLive.com. April 12, 2017. Retrieved May 8, 2018.
  5. ↑ "Pac-12 honors: Beavers, Beavers everywhere". NBC Sports. June 1, 2017. Retrieved June 6, 2018.
  6. ↑ "Oregon State, Puyallup High pitcher Luke Heimlich says he won't play in College World Series". The News Tribune. June 15, 2017. Retrieved May 8, 2018.
  7. 1 2 "Oregon State, Puyallup High pitcher Luke Heimlich undrafted". The News Tribune. June 14, 2017. Retrieved May 8, 2018.
  8. 1 2 "He Was Convicted of Molesting a 6-Year Old. Should He Have a Future in Baseball?". The New York Times. May 7, 2018. Retrieved May 8, 2018.
  9. ↑ "Oregon State Beavers pitcher Luke Heimlich goes undrafted for second straight year". Espn.com. June 6, 2018. Retrieved June 16, 2018.
  10. ↑ "Oregon State ace Luke Heimlich selected College Baseball Foundation's National Pitcher of Year". OregonLive.com. June 14, 2018. Retrieved June 16, 2018.
  11. ↑ "MLB: Luke Heimlich signed by Lamigo Monkeys". Sports.yahoo.com. May 22, 2018. Retrieved August 8, 2018.
  12. ↑ Yeh, Joseph (August 7, 2018). "Baseball team's signing of convicted child molester stirs controversy". Central News Agency. Retrieved August 9, 2018.
  13. ↑ "OSU baseball: Heimlich contract falls through". Gazette Times. August 7, 2018. Retrieved August 8, 2018.
  14. ↑ Huang, Chiao-wen; Hsu, Hsiao-ling (August 11, 2018). "Taiwan's pro baseball league rejects controversial U.S. pitcher". Central News Agency. Retrieved August 12, 2018.
  15. ↑ "Luke Heimlich Signs With Mexican Team, but Could Be Blocked - The New York Times". The New York Times. Retrieved March 24, 2019.
  16. ↑ "Mexican League president to decide whether to allow Luke Heimlich to play | MLB". Sporting News. March 8, 2019. Retrieved March 24, 2019.
  17. ↑ "Luke Heimlich, College Star Convicted of Sex Crime, Quietly Makes Pro Debut in Mexico". The New York Times. April 10, 2019. Retrieved April 21, 2019.
  18. ↑ Daschel, Nick (April 10, 2019). "Former Oregon State pitcher Luke Heimlich makes his professional debut". oregonlive.com. Retrieved April 21, 2019.
  19. ↑ "Mexican League Cancels 2020 Season".
  20. 1 2 3 "Pamplin Media Group – Penalties paid, Heimlich ready to return for Beavers baseball". Portlandtribune.com. Retrieved May 8, 2018.
  21. ↑ "Luke Heimlich sex crime surfaces as Oregon State baseball nears College World Series". OregonLive.com. June 9, 2017. Retrieved May 8, 2018.
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