GARY, Ind. — The 2008 Northern League Rookie of the Year and the Gary SouthShore RailCats all-time batting leader, infielder Mike Rohde will remain in a ‘Cats uniform this summer, today agreeing to terms on a contract for the 2010 season.

Rohde, 26, has spent his entire professional career in the Northern League and has shot up the RailCats all-time leader boards since being signed by manager Greg Tagert prior to the start of the 2008 season.  A fan favorite at U. S. Steel Yard, Rohde’s combined .297 batting average as a RailCat is the highest ever – tied with former outfielder Mike Reese – and his .319 average in 2008 was good enough for 10th in the league and is the third-highest in franchise history.  Rohde was selected as the league’s top rookie in 2008, becoming the first ‘Cats player to ever win the award, and made his first All-Star team that summer.

A mainstay in the RailCats lineup the last two years – he’s played in 179 of a possible 192 regular season games – Rohde cracked 25 doubles and drove in 55 runs in his Rookie of the Year season of 2008, then followed it up with a career-best six triples and two home runs last season while stealing a career-high 14 bases.  The Wisconsin native ranks in the top 10 in nearly every career offensive category and – combined with a partial 2007 season in Schaumburg – boasts a .303 career average with lifetime totals of 52 doubles, 119 RBI and 33 stolen bases.

Rohde has also been a major factor in the RailCats run to the Northern League Championship Series the last two years.  In the 2008 playoffs, Rohde went 9-for-24 (.375) to post the fifth-best postseason average in the league, and followed that up with six hits in seven playoff games last year.

Rohde joined Schaumburg in 2007 just after completing his college career at the University of Illinois, where he was a Second Team All-Big Ten selection as a sophomore and finished his three years with the Fighting Illini as a .327 hitter.  Before transferring to Illinois, Rohde spent two seasons at the University of New Orleans.

Originally from Brookfield, Wisconsin, Rohde was a star in the college wood bat Northwoods League during his college years, playing four seasons for the Madison Mallards and helping his team to a league championship.  After his final Mallards season in 2006, Rohde was inducted into the team’s Wall of Fame.

Rohde becomes the third position player and seventh RailCat to sign a contract for the 2010 season, joining fellow infielder Chris Carrara, catcher Matt Lenski and pitchers Aaron Cook, Zach McClellan, Andy Paulun and J.J. Potrikus.  The RailCats will have at least 27 players in camp when the team opens Spring Training at U. S. Steel Yard on May 6.

Rohde will also be among the celebrity stars at the second-annual Fan Fest, Saturday, February 20 at the Radisson Hotel in Merrillville.  Discount presale Fan Fest tickets are on sale now by calling 219.882.2255, visiting www.railcatsbaseball.com or stopping by U. S. Steel Yard during regular business hours.