Oregon State's top pitcher Luke Heimlich was removed from a number of baseball draft boards on Thursday. The player has Pleaded Guilty right after reports stated that he was involved in molesting a six-year-old girl. Apparently, Heimlich molested one of his female relatives back in his teenage years, when he was 15.
Luke Heimlich was considered one of the best pitchers in college baseball this season, if not the absolute best. Heimlich was developing a strong career for himself, and he was on his way to the Major League Baseball's amateur draft on Monday.
A report revealed his conviction of molestation in August 2012.
Luke Heimlich acknowledged he had sexual contact with his relative
The 21-year-old pitcher admitted that he had sexual contact with the girl, who was his cousin in his hometown of Puyallup, Washington. The general manager of the Chicago Cubs, Jed Hoyer, stated that Heimlich might be off the board as they see no reason to keep him along with them. Other general managers from the American League said that the team is unlikely to remove Heimlich entirely from the pool of potential picks.
It appears that multiple teams were aware of Heimlich's incident through various background checks. According to the court records, Luke Heimlich was accused of molesting the six-year-old girl for over two times.
The victim's mother stated that she was shocked that the college he is attending has him on the baseball team.
Heimlich pleaded guilty several years ago
According to the Mail Online, the molestation case was registered on two counts. Earlier in 2012, the accused pleaded guilty for incidents that took place in February 2011 and December 2011.
He was charged with two counts of molestation and was sent to a diversion program for two years to receive treatment and probation as a sex offender.
In August 2012, the player was forced to register as a Level 1 sex offender. After the treatment and probation for two years, he entered the Oregon State University in the fall of 2014.
His case was brought to the limelight when he failed to update his registration as an offender.
With incredible pitching skills, the left-handed played for Oregon State's No. 1 Baseball team. He ranked at the 43rd position overall by Baseball America. Washington, however, considers the committed crime to be a serious issue. With years gone by after his crime, Heimlich is sure to be off the record with baseball in the future.
