Senior Season — 2015
Karl was one of three Cornell players to start in all 40 games for the Big Red, making 39 of those at first base, while serving as the DH in his other start. Hed led the club with a pair of home runs and was tied for the team lead with 22 runs scored, while hitting in the middle of the lineup all season. His long balls came in consecutive games against Columbia, a four-game set that he ended going 6-for-14 at the plate with 5 RBI, a double and three runs scored. He had a six-game hitting streak in late-March and was second best on the team with five multi-RBI games. His 18 RBI put him at fourth on the team. He was a solid defender during his two years on the East Hill, with his .984 fielding percentage putting him at 10th all-time at Cornell.
Junior Season — 2014
Karl made an immediate impact in his first season with the Big Red, leading the team among qualifying batters with a .280 average, nine home runs, 32 RBIs and .552 slugging percentage. He started all 39 games for Cornell, whether it was at first base, left field or designated hitter. His nine home runs are tied for fourth in program history for the most in a single season. There were a pair of games in which he swatted two home runs — March 15 at James Madison and April 27 at Princeton. Karl had a total of four home runs among his eight hits in the three-game series at JMU, leading to an astronomical 1.467 slugging percentage and 11 RBIs for the weekend and subsequently Ivy League Player of the Week honors. His grand slam with two outs in the top of the ninth inning in the series finale sent the game to extra innings, with Cornell eventually winning in the 10th, 14-8. Karl had five RBIs in the game, a season-high for a Big Red player. It was also a big portion of his eight-game hitting streak, which featured 16 hits. Karl then had seven hits and seven RBIs over the team's final five games, including a pair of solo shots in the Big Red's extra-inning win April 27 at Princeton.
Prior to Cornell
One of the Big Red’s three incoming transfers, Karl arrives on East Hill after stops at University of Louisville and Catawba Valley Community College (N.C.). He was a Perfect Game USA Preseason Underclass All-American Honorable Mention in 2010, then a Perfect Game USA Top 1,000 national recruit and Rawlings Preseason Underclass All-Northeast Region Second Team selection the following season. In his senior season at Montville Township High School, Karl earned All-State and All-County honors and was named team MVP after hitting .536 with seven home runs, 31 RBIs, 14 doubles, 46 runs scored and 30 walks. He was redshirted by Louisville for 2012, but was named to the BIG EAST All-Academic Team.
Coach Walkenbach on Karl
“Ryan really caught our eye in the summer of 2010 as one of the better hitters in New Jersey and a potential big-time hitter in the Ivy League. We’re ecstatic to have a chance to work with him and see what he can do with a couple of years of college baseball under his belt from Louisville and Catawba Valley. He is a powerful young man who can put a charge into the baseball from the left side. He will have a good chance to be an immediate factor in the middle of our lineup.”
Personal
Ryan William Karl is the son of Brian and Susan Karl, and he has a younger brother. His father played professional baseball in the Milwaukee Brewers organization. He is enrolled in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.
