Michael Rothenberg

Photo by: Duke Athletics

Position:
Catcher
Height:
6-3
Weight:
215
Class:
Senior
Hometown:
Boca Raton, Fla.
High School:
Pine Crest

Selected in the 12th round (345th overall) in the 2021 MLB Draft by the Detroit Tigers.

Career: A switch-hitting catcher with power … member of the first Duke team to reach three consecutive NCAA postseasons (2018, 2019, 2021) … reached an NCAA Super Regional (2018, 2019) for the first time in program history … won the 2021 ACC Baseball Championship, the first league tournament title in program history … two-time member of the ACC Baseball All-Tournament Team (2019, 2021) … slashed .266/.388/.479 in his Duke career, appearing in 166 games while starting 157 … graduates from Duke ranking in the all-time career list in numerous categories … blasted 24 home runs in his career to rank 13th in program history … totaled 128 RBIs to place 17th in program lore … tied for 24th all-time at Duke with a .479 slugging percentage … ended his career fourth in school history in hit by pitch (36) … selected to the Academic All-ACC team in 2019 … named Academic All-American in 2020.

2021: Served as a member of the team’s leadership council as the time management liaison … started 54 of Duke’s 55 games on the season with all but one start coming at catcher … ranked second on the team in doubles (16) and RBIs (42) … tied for second on the team in extra-base hits (28) … led the program and tied for third in the ACC in sacrifice hits with five … second on the team in games with multiple RBIs with 12 … led the ACC in runners picked off (five) … caught 13 runners stealing to rank fourth in the ACC … named to the 2021 ACC Championship All-Tournament Team after leading Duke to the 2021 ACC Baseball Championship title, winning the tournament for the first time in Duke history … assisted the Blue Devils to win 12 straight heading into NCAA postseason play, the longest winning streak by a Duke team since 1998 … opened the season with a 16-game on-base streak, extending his streak to 40 games dating back to 2019 … drew three walks to match his career high in Duke’s opener at No. 23 Coastal Carolina (2/20) … went 3-for-3 with two doubles, a home run and two RBIs in Duke’s win over No. 11 Georgia Tech (3/28) … strung together an eight-game hitting streak from at No. 20 Miami (4/4) to against Wake Forest (4/18) … posted three hits with four RBI and two runs scored against Wake Forest (4/17) … went 5-for-16 with seven RBIs on his way to All-Tournament Team honors at the ACC Championship … hit the 24th grand slam in ACC Tournament history, doing so in the first inning against No. 17 Florida State (5/26) … followed that performance with a walk-off solo home run against Miami (5/27) to send Duke to the tournament semifinals.

2020: Tabbed to the 2020 Buster Posey Award Watch List … was recognized as the No. 68 junior in the country by Perfect Game entering the spring … boasted a team-high .551 on-base percentage to lead the ACC, while ranking first on the team in RBI with 17 across the season that was cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic … owned a reached-base streak of 24 games, dating back to the final eight contests of the 2019 campaign … placed second in the ACC in hit-by-pitch with eight on the campaign, while tying for 18^th in the conference in batting average, closing out the season at a .349 clip … tied for sixth in the league in walks with 15 … recorded his first homer of the season in the series finale with Army (2/16), finishing 2-for-4 with two RBI and two runs scored … registered three RBI in the midweek matchup with William & Mary (2/18), adding one double and one run scored … went 2-for-4 with one RBI in the series finale with Cornel (2/23) … contributed three RBI in the midweek contest with Air Force (2/24), going 1-for-2 with one run scored … notched his second home run of the season in the midweek matchup with Campbell (3/4), recording his second career grand slam, while also adding one walk.

2019: Saw action in every contest of the 2019 season, making 60 starts … led the team in home runs with 11 while recording a team-high 52 runs batted in … ranked second on the team in both on-base percentage (.390) and slugging percentage (.481) while placing first in walks with 33 … selected to the ACC Baseball Championship All-Tournament Team … recorded five hits and eight RBI across the three-game series against Northwestern, including home runs in the bookend games of the series … posted a four RBI performance in the series opener with Wake Forest (3/22), finishing the contest 3-for-4 with a double, a home run, and three runs scored … provided the Blue Devils with the game-winning hit in the series opener at Clemson (4/19) as part of his 3-for-5 effort with one double and four RBI … recorded a three-hit outing in the series finale with Georgia Tech (5/12), adding one home run, three RBI and two runs scored … notched a career-high five RBI in the opening game of the ACC Baseball Championship against Notre Dame (5/21), including his first career grand slam, marking the 23^rd grand slam in ACC Baseball Championship history.

2018: Named to the 2017-18 ACC Academic Honor Roll ... Appeared in 34 games, starting 27 ... Started 11 games behind the plate and 16 as designated hitter ... Hit .253 with four doubles, a triple and two home runs ... Knocked in 17 RBI and scored 18 runs ... Stole two bases in two attempts ... Walked 10 times and was hit by a pitch nine times ... Made his collegiate debut February 18 at Vanderbilt ... Singled in his first career at bat ... Belted his first career home run February 23 against Bucknell ... Also homered versus Bucknell February 25.

High School: Four-year letterwinner at Pine Crest School ... Set the school record for career home runs, breaking current Blue Devil teammate Zack Kone's previous program record (19) ... 2017 Miami Herald All-Broward Boys' Scholar-Athlete ... Earned 2017 Rawlings-Perfect Game Honorable Mention All-America and first team Florida All-Region recognition ... All-district selection ... All-Broward County pick ... 2016 Perfect Game Underclass 2nd Team honoree as a junior, hitting .308 with three home runs and 12 RBI ... Tabbed 2015 Underclass High Honorable Mention distinction ... Member of the National English Honor Society and the Beta Club ... AP Scholar with Distinction ... Honor Roll student.

Personal: Born Michael Richard Rothenberg Oct. 5, 1998 in Miami Beach, Fla. ... Son of Mark and Susannah Rothenberg ... Has one older brother (Matt) and a younger sister (Arielle) ... Brother Matt is a member of the Harvard baseball team.

Last updated 7/12/2021