Ringhofer picked by Orioles in MLB draft

Posted

South Dakota State University catcher Luke Ringhofer was selected by the Baltimore Orioles in the 22nd round – and the 668th overall pick – of the Major League Baseball Draft Wednesday afternoon.

A native of Cottage Grove, Minnesota, Ringhofer has been a mainstay in the Jackrabbit lineup in each of his three seasons at SDSU.

He has been a two-time all-Summit League performer, earning first-team honors as a designated hitter as a freshman and second-team recognition as a catcher as a sophomore. Ringhofer also was named a Louisville Slugger Freshman All-American in 2015.

In 154 career games with the Jackrabbits, Ringhofer has batted .323 with 31 doubles, seven home runs and 95 runs batted in.

He ranks third on the SDSU all-time charts with 114 bases on balls while compiling a career .447 on-base percentage. His 753 career putouts rank 10th in program history.

The left-handed-hitting Ringhofer is currently playing his second season in the summer collegiate circuit with the St. Cloud Rox of the Northwoods League. He was a Northwoods League All-Star in 2016.

Ringhofer, who has a year of collegiate eligibility remaining, is the 14th Jackrabbit baseball player to be selected in the draft since 1966, and is the eighth since 2007. Three previous draftees – Caleb Thielbar (2009), Blake Treinen (2010/2011) and Layne Somsen (2013) – have reached the major leagues.

Adam Bray and Zach Coppola were the most recent Jackrabbit draftees in 2015 and are currently members of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Philadelphia Phillies organizations, respectively.