Oregon State's Luke Heimlich pitches to a Dallas Baptist batter during the third inning of an NCAA college baseball tournament regional game in Dallas, Texas, in 2015.

PORTLAND — Luke Heimlich, a standout pitcher for Oregon State’s top-ranked baseball team, pleaded guilty to a single count of molesting a 6-year-old girl when he was a teenager.

Heimlich’s criminal history was reported by The Oregonian on Thursday, a day or two before he’s slated to pitch in this weekend’s regional final against Vanderbilt. The winner advances to the College World Series.

The left-hander from Puyallup, Washington, is projected to be an early round pick in next week’s Major League Baseball draft.

In an editorial accompanying the article, the newspaper said it learned about Heimlich’s 2012 conviction while doing a routine background check before running a lengthy profile on him.

Heimlich failed to renew his registration as a sex offender in Oregon within 10 days of his most recent birthday and was cited in Benton County on a misdemeanor charge that was dismissed last month, according to court records reviewed by the AP.

That citation led The Oregonian to the Washington state case and it obtained those records using a public information act request.

Heimlich did not respond to requests for comment from the newspaper. Coach Pat Casey declined to comment.

Heimlich’s attorney, Stephen Ensor, did not return a call from the AP.

Oregon State spokesman Steve Clark declined to say when Oregon State became aware of Heimlich’s status as a registered sex offender or answer any questions about the case, citing federal laws that protect student privacy.

The state police provide the school with a list of registered sex offenders who are affiliated with the campus on a regular basis, Clark said, and the school then interviews each person and puts safeguards in place to protect other students and staff.

Heimlich ultimately pleaded guilty to one count of molestation between February 2011 and December 2011, a period during which he was 15. Prosecutors dismissed the other charge as part of a plea bargain.

He entered a diversion program, received two years of probation and was ordered to attend sex offender treatment for two years, according to court records. He was sentenced to 40 weeks of detention at Washington’s Juvenile Rehabilitation authority. But that sentence was suspended and he served no time, according to court records, because he successfully completed probation.

Heimlich was classified in Washington state as the lowest-level sex offender with little risk of repeating the behavior. He finished his probation and court-ordered classes in fall 2014, around the time he moved to Corvallis, Oregon, to attend Oregon State.

Clark, the OSU spokesman, said he didn’t know if publicity about the case would lead to any changes in this weekend’s pitching line-up.

Heimlich is the top pitcher on Oregon State’s No. 1-ranked baseball team, compiling an 11-1 record with a 0.76 ERA.