Pair of Sonoma County prospects selected in Major League Baseball draft

Two Sonoma County locals heard their names called during this year’s Major League Baseball draft, which concluded Tuesday afternoon.

Petaluma native Joe Lampe was drafted by the Cleveland Guardians in the third round with the 92nd overall pick, while Santa Rosa’s Austin Ehrlicher was taken by the Boston Red Sox in the 18th round.

Lampe, a former Casa Grande and Santa Rosa Junior College player, is coming off a breakout sophomore season at Arizona State, where he batted .340 with 12 home runs and 41 RBIs for the Sun Devils this past spring.

“I’ve been preparing for this my whole life,” Lampe, 21, told The Press Democrat on Tuesday. “It’s something that I’m ready for. I’m ready to move on from college and I’m grateful for the experience that I had there; it made me a mature and better player. I can’t thank ASU enough.”

Lampe was a three-year varsity player during his prep days at Casa Grande, where he was teammates with future No. 1 overall pick Spencer Torkelson. Before his time in Tempe, Lampe was a force during his lone, pandemic-shortened season at SRJC, where he slashed .424/.477/.687 with eight triples, a home run and 25 RBIs in just 20 games, helping lead the Bear Cubs to an 18-2 start and the No. 1 ranking in the state.

He’s currently back home in Petaluma, where he watched the draft with friends and family this week, and is preparing to head to Cleveland’s spring training facility in Arizona to finalize his rookie contract.

“I’m ready to get to work,” he said. “I’m sure it’s all going to sink in once I put a hat and a jersey on here in the coming days and get out and tour the facilities.”

Ehrlicher, a 2021 Maria Carrillo grad, just wrapped up his freshman year at SRJC, where he played both baseball and basketball for the Bear Cubs. This past spring he was primarily a pitcher, making eight starts in 10 appearances with a 43-14 strikeout-to-walk ratio and 4.26 earned run average in 38 innings. He also batted.321 and hit three home runs in 28 at-bats.

“I went into the draft figuring a team might pick me, but it was a surprise,” he told The Press Democrat on Tuesday. “I didn’t really get any texts or calls coming up to the pick, so I was a little bit surprised but I’m glad it happened. I’m excited.”

Unlike Lampe, Ehrlicher is unsure of his next move. While he said he’s leaning toward returning to school with hopes of improving his draft stock, he added that he’s keeping his options open. All drafted players have until Aug. 1 to sign with their selecting teams.

“I’ll figure out what I’m going to do in the next few days,” Ehrlicher said.

You can reach Staff Writer Gus Morris at 707-304-9372 or gus.morris@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @JustGusPD.