Colton Walker signs with Bellevue University

Last fall, The Dalles graduate fielded five college offers and following his sophomore year at BMCC, there were five others calling his name.

One program stood out the most — Bellevue University in Nebraska.

Tuesday, Walker officially signed a National Letter of Intent to continue his baseball and academic careers at BU this fall.

Life has come at him fast, so progress from 5A baseball to community college to NAIA shows that his dreams can be a reality.

“I knew it was always possible to play at a four-year school, but just not as good of a program as Bellevue, so that’s exciting,” Walker said. “I’m definitely up for this next challenge. Challenges have always been my motivation and will always have a drive to be better.”

Bellevue wrapped up the 2018 season with a 38-23 record (17-5 NSAA) and won its second North Star Tournament Championship in the past three seasons.

The Bruins earned their eighth-straight NAIA bid and 20th National Tournament appearance in the storied program’s history.

“What got me hooked with Bellevue is that it’s a very winning program,” Walker said. “Under coach (Duane Monlux), who’s been there about six years, the program has had three 50-win seasons and a couple 40-win seasons.”

At BMCC, Walker made 22 starts, 23 appearances, over the past two seasons and went 9-6 with a 4.11 earned run average.

The 6-1, 195-pound right-hander logged 133 2/3 innings, including five complete games and a pair of shutouts, with 104 strikeouts and 52 walks, while yielding a .265 batting average to opposing hitters.

“Colton was great for us for two years,” BMCC head coach Brad Baker said. “You couldn’t have asked for a better kid, both on the field and off the field. On the field, he is a warrior on the mound, he’s tough and is very competitive. He battled every game, threw a lot of strikes for us and he competed. As a person, he was a great student, his teammates respected him, and he was a team captain. I am really going to miss him being a part of the program, but I am very happy for him. He deserves this.”

Bellevue is losing seven pitchers and returns as many as six for a staff that posted a 4.19 earned run average with seven shutouts.

Walker said that Monlux will get a chance to pitch immediately, but he is going in with the mindset of earning his rotation spot.

Over the past two years, Walker developed a changeup and his fastball hit in the high 80s.

With some extra coaching and fine-tuning, he can add more pitches to his repertoire, while increasing his velocity.

Walker said that the big thing he needs to change is getting a little more flexible and having a tougher mentality on the mound.

“Colton is a pitcher that has thrown a lot of innings the past two seasons,” Monlux said. “He has the veteran leadership that we are looking for in our program. He has put together two very solid seasons in the NWAC East Region. We expect good things from Colton in a Bruin uniform.”

Another draw for Walker was a chance to leave Oregon and experience life around a big city, as Omaha is a 10-mile trip away, and he will meet new teammates and a higher level of play behind him.

While her youngest child is nearly 1,600 miles away from home, Walker’s mother, Dana Ringlbauer, said she is going to be cheering even louder from afar.

“I am a very proud momma,” Ringlbauer said. “I see the work he puts in, in the offseason or when he’s just home for the weekend, so it just shows how much baseball means to him. He makes his family very proud and we enjoy going to watch him. I couldn’t imagine not watching him play ball.”

Walker is working toward his criminal justice degree, and after that, plans to enter the law program.

By earning the chance to play baseball collegiately on a scholarship, Walker is providing a blueprint for many athletes to follow.

“If an athlete puts their mind to it, and network themselves in positive ways with a positive attitude, they can do the same,” Walker said. “The key though, is to keep playing and not slacking on workouts. You have to stay motivated and disciplined and willing to work hard to get better each day to further your skill set.”