Versatile Louis Ott returns to
Northwest Indiana after a superb 2010 season which saw the switch-hitter bat
.301 with 26 doubles in 90 games.
Ott, 25, was a mainstay in Manager Greg Tagert’s
lineup in 2010 and turned in an impressive season producing consistently at the
plate earning a .301 batting average while bouncing around a number of
different positions, starting at least nine games at five different spots. In
his previous five years as a pro, Ott collected 27 doubles, nine triples, six
homers, and held a career .360 on-base percentage. In 2010 alone, Ott belted 26
doubles, six triples (good for second in the Northern League) and six homers
while posting a sparkling .391 on-base percentage.
Ott has reached as high as Double-A in his career and brought
a knack for getting on base and the ability to play a number of positions to
the RailCats. Ott boasts a .367 lifetime on-base percentage and has played at
least 25 career games at second base, third base and shortstop, and has even
played 11 games in the outfield and first base, and catcher 21 times. The
switch hitter also appeared in three games on the mound for the RailCats in
2010 allowing four hits and three earned runs in three innings.
Before his outstanding 2010 season with the RailCats, Ott
was coming off his best professional season in 2009, batting .280 in 64 games
for the Florida Marlins High-A affiliate in the Florida State League. Ott collected 61 hits and walked 39 times in
264 plate appearances for the Jupiter Hammerheads, good for a career-best .388
on-base percentage.
Drafted in the 13th Round of the 2005 Major
League Entry Draft by the Detroit Tigers, Ott made his professional debut later
that season by hitting .231 in 32 games for the Tigers Gulf Coast League
affiliate. Ott slowly climbed the
organizational ladder for the Tigers and produced sound numbers at each stop,
posting an on-base percentage above .363 in 2006 and 2007, then reaching Erie
(AA) for seven games in 2008.
Ott attended
Sacramento City College for two seasons before beginning his professional
career. A native of Peteluma,
California, Ott now makes his home in the same town as another switch-hitting
RailCats infielder, Jay Pecci.
