One of the most controversial prospects in draft history was not selected by an MLB team. Oregon State left-hander Luke Heimlich did not land with any team in the 40 rounds of the 2018 MLB Draft. On talent, Heimlich was considered potential late first-round pick. He's an advanced southpaw who posted a 2.34 ERA with 365 strikeouts in 360 innings and four years with the Beavers. Heimlich's performance and talent is undeniable, and he is the kind of polished college hurler who tends to climb the minor league ladder quickly. There is more to the story, however. Heimlich is a convicted sex offender who pleaded guilty to a felony count of molesting his 6-year-old niece when he was 15. His hand-written guilty plea included the words: "I admit that I had sexual contact with my niece." The charges stemmed from incidents in 2009 and 2011. The New York Times has more details: As part of a plea deal, reached when Heimlich was 16, one of the charges was dropped and he was placed on two years' probation, took court-ordered classes and had to register for five years as a Level 1 sex offender, a designation the state of Washington uses for someone considered of low risk to the community and unlikely to become a repeat offender. Heimlich also had to write a letter apologizing to his niece. Heimlich's case might never have been made public if not for the fact that, years later, while pitching for Oregon State, he failed to update his whereabouts for a state registry of sex offenders, which led to a police citation, which in turn tipped reporters to his case. Controversial Oregon State lefty Luke Heimlich went undrafted. Getty Images Furthermore, Heimlich steadfastly denies molesting his niece, despite the guilty plea and legal proceedings. Here's more from the New York Times: "I always denied anything ever happened," he said. "Even after I pled guilty, which was a decision me and my parents thought was the best option to move forward as a family. And after that, even when I was going through counseling and treatment, I maintained my innocence the whole time." There was no interaction with his niece that he could imagine would have been misinterpreted, he said, adding, "Nothing ever happened, so there is no incident to look back on." In recent days several MLB team executives told reporters, including Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic and Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times, they would not personally draft Heimlich, but did expect to hear his name called at some point. MLB teams -- and pro sports teams in general -- have shown they will overlook ugly legal situations when it can benefit them on the field, but Heimlich still couldn't find a team willing to use a draft pick on him in 2018.<doc-sep>Luke Heimlich, the Oregon State pitcher who pleaded guilty to molesting his 6-year-old niece when he was a teenager, was not selected in the first 78 picks of Major League Baseball's draft on Monday. Heimlich, 22, was slated to be a high-round pick in the 2017 draft but his arrest as a 16-year-old was revealed by the Oregonian just days before the draft. He went undrafted and returned to Oregon State for his senior year. However, the Texas Rangers indicated recently they have removed Heimlich from their draft board, while other organizations have refused to address whether they are considering the left-hander. Heimlich signed a seven-page guilty plea in a deal that enabled him to avoid jail time. In a recent Sports Illustrated interview, he denies molesting his niece, a claim vigorously refuted by family members. MORE The draft continues Tuesday with rounds 3-10 and concludes Wednesday with the final 30 rounds. Heimlich went 15-1 with a 2.42 ERA this year for Oregon State, which will play host to Minnesota next weekend in the super regionals of the NCAA playoffs.<doc-sep>
Ralph Lauer/Associated Press Oregon State pitcher Luke Heimlich was one of the best collegiate pitchers in the country, but he was not selected in the 2018 MLB draft for reasons beyond his on-field ability. Bob Nightengale of USA Today reported Heimlich was not picked during the 40-round draft. The Beavers ace pled guilty to molesting his six-year-old niece when he was a teenager before attending Oregon State, though he has since publicly said he is innocent. Danny Moran of The Oregonian reported on the incident in 2017 by obtaining court documents revealing Heimlich was 15 years old at the time. Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times noted the left-hander signed a guilty plea at 16 years old that included a letter of apology and the requirement he register as a sex offender in addition to probation and counseling. "For me, there are too many red flags," a major league talent evaluator said of the possibility of drafting Heimlich, per Shaikin. That talent evaluator granted he believed a team would select the pitcher during the 2018 draft, although that did not turn out to be the case. Heimlich told Kurt Streeter of the New York Times he did not molest his niece, saying "nothing ever happened." However, the girl’s mother said, "There is no way he didn’t do it," pointing to the specificity of her daughter’s descriptions of the incident. The Oregon State product also denied the crime in a lengthy feature by S.L. Price of Sports Illustrated. On the field, the southpaw put together a 15-1 record with a 2.42 ERA and 142 strikeouts in 111.2 innings.