Four Cardinals selected in MLB Draft

Alex Call, Ball State’s junior outfielder runs to first base during the game against Bowling Green on April 23. DN PHOTO GRACE RAMEY
Alex Call, Ball State’s junior outfielder runs to first base during the game against Bowling Green on April 23. DN PHOTO GRACE RAMEY

Cardinals taken in the 2016 MLB Draft

Alex Call -- Round 3 (86 overall), Chicago White Sox

Jarett Rindfleisch -- Round 9 (263 overall), Miami Marlins

Zach Plesac -- Round 12 (362 overall), Cleveland Indians

Colin Brockhouse -- Round 37 (1125 overall), Pittsburgh Pirates

Four Cardinals were selected in the 2016 Major League Baseball Draft this weekend.

Junior right fielder Alex Call was taken in the third round by the Chicago White Sox, and junior catcher Jarett Rindfleisch was picked up by the Miami Marlins in the ninth round.

Junior right-handed pitcher Zach Plesac was selected by the Cleveland Indians in the 12th round and the Pittsburgh Pirates drafted sophomore right-handed pitcher/third baseman Colin Brockhouse.

As the 86th overall pick, Call is the earliest-drafted Cardinal since Kolbrin Vitek was picked 20th in first round by the Boston Red Sox in 2010.

The earliest a Cardinal has ever been drafted was in 2002, when right-handed pitcher Bryan Bullington was taken by the Pittsburgh Pirates with the first pick of the draft.

Like Vitek in 2010, Call won the Mid-American Conference Player of the Year Award and was a first team Louisville Slugger All-American. Call was also named to the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Academic All-America first team.

Rindfleisch hit .307 with a .446 on-base percentage with a .503 slugging percentage. He was one of three Cardinals to clear the .300/.400/.500 benchmarks, along with Call (.358/.443/.667) and undrafted junior first baseman Caleb Stayton (.377/.482/.614).

Rindfleisch's OBP was third in the MAC, while Call was third in batting average, fourth in OBP and first in slugging percentage.

Call also led the MAC with 24 doubles, six triples, 162 stolen bases and 67 runs.

Behind the plate, Rindfleisch caught 21 runners stealing on 53 attempts against him.

Plesac finished the 2016 season with a 4.25 ERA and 49 strikeouts in 48.2 innings pitched, making him the only Cardinal to average at least one strikeout per inning (min. 10 innings pitched).

As a freshman in 2014, he was first-team All-MAC and he won the conference's Freshman Pitcher of the Year award.

In 2015, he was second-team All-MAC after leading the conference with 107.1 innings pitched and 5 complete games. 

Brockhouse was a two-way player for the Cardinals this season, pitching in 17 games (seven starts), starting 16 games as the designated hitter with five starts at third base and two more starts in left field. He hit .260 with three home runs and on the mound he carried a 5.18 ERA with 53 strikeouts in 57.1 innings.

All four players still have remaining college eligibility, so there is a chance some might return to Ball State next year depending on what happens with contract negotiations, physicals and other variables.

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