Not once, but twice, has Keith Rogalla’s name been called during the MLB Draft.

 

The first being in 2014 when Rogalla was selected by the Philadelphia Phillies in the 37th round right out of high school.

 

The Oak Park River Forest graduate had quite the decision on his hands, turn pro or attend Creighton University.

 

“That’s pretty tough. You know it’s not an easy situation, but at the time I’m talking to my family, we just thought that I wasn’t mature enough,” said the right-handed pitcher. “I was young kid, I’d never done my laundry and I just needed to do some growing as a player, too. Pro ball’s a good place to, but starting my education and going there (Creighton) and improving my baseball skills was the best thing for me to do.”

 

The Oak Park native chose to attend Creighton, after being a two-time First Team All-West Suburban Conference selection.

 

The decision proved to serve Rogalla good, as he found himself in the weekend rotation as a freshman at Creighton, while posting a 4-2 record, pitching in 14 games and starting in 10 of them. The righty also recorded Creighton’s first Big East win of the year.

 

Rogalla followed up his freshman year with a 5-3 record, making 15 starts and tossing 73 innings. His longest start of the year was an eight-inning, one run victory over Jacksonville.

 

Which leads to his junior season. In 2017, Rogalla held opponents to a .231 batting average, while striking out 70 batters in 71 1/3 innings of work on his way to a Second Team All-Big East selection.

 

Following his junior year, for the second time, Rogalla was selected in the MLB Draft. This time in the 12th round by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, lifting a weight off his shoulders.

 

“Don’t be so nervous now that it finally happened, I was anxious for it to happen,” said the now Angels prospect. “Then it was just a celebration, I got calls from my parents, my family members, my friends and after that it was just excitement.”

 

One of Rogalla’s summer travel coaches, Nelson Gord, knew this day was coming back when the righty was just a junior in high school.

 

“Early summer after his junior year he was scheduled to pitch on Sunday of a tournament we were playing in.  Because of rain and other factors, we didn't end up playing that game. In an effort to get pitchers work in, and some additional ABs, we held a practice on that Monday.  Keith and his dad weren't too happy that he got "skipped" in the rotation, but my response to them was

"This weekend at the St. Charles Showcase (now the Chicagoland Classic) you're going to pound the zone with 88-90 and none of this is going to matter because my phone will be blowing up and you'll have a number of offers," said Gord. “Sure enough that weekend he was 90-92 and also showed a nasty slider a couple times.  I'm sitting in the dugout just laughing at all the phone calls and emails.”

 

Gord, who played at the professional ranks for the Schaumburg Flyers and the Kansas City T-Bones, had some advice for Rogalla as he enters the professional ranks.

 

“Stay in your lane and don’t try to guess what the organization is trying to do. I saw so many guys get caught up in that trap and it takes away from the pleasure of playing the game.  Once you lose the pleasure, the passion fades, and then it becomes nothing more than an under-paying job,” said Gord. “Smile and have fun. Be an energy giver.  Those guys stick around forever and will always have a position somewhere.”

 

Rogalla is currently with the Orem Owlz, the Angels rookie ball affiliate. Since being assigned to the Owlz, he has already has some early takeaways from pro ball.

“You have to throw two pitches for strikes. Right now I’m coming out of the pen, so you can get away with a lot more because you’re not seeing a lineup two-three times,” said Rogalla. “I’d say if you make a mistake here, they’ll make you pay for it more often than college hitters do.”

 

No matter what happens, Rogalla is one of Gord’s former players to reach the affiliated ranks. Something Gord says is neat to see how the whole process came together.

 

“It’s incredible.  Not because I feel that we “made” that happen, but rather because I know first hand how hard it is to get there, and what chasing that dream is like.  It’s really cool to sit back and think about all the ups and downs these guys went through in order to get to where they are today. I truly believe that adversity, and those (sometimes tough) conversations, have assisted in shaping them into the men they are today,” said Gord.