The 2024 draft class of the Washington Nationals has done a great job of turning heads so far. While the names at the top like Seaver King and Luke Dickerson have already showed a ton of promise so far in their professional careers, some of the guys who were picked later are doing their part to make their claim as being a big part of this organization's future.
One player in particular that wasn't among the team's top picks has been doing some great things on the field recently, and it's time to acknowledge what we are seeing from 2024 8th-round pick Sam Petersen. The outfielder, who was drafted out of the University of Iowa, made his professional debut last season with the Fredericksburg Nationals, but has been able to successfully build on that solid start so far in 2025.
In 7 games with the FredNats last season, he had a .991 OPS, which put him on track to begin this season at a higher level. He had some injury troubles earlier this season, which delayed the start to his 2025 campaign. Petersen destroyed pitching down in rookie ball, as a college guy should, and quickly got bumped up to Fredericksburg again.
After just 2 games with the FredNats in 2025, Petersen was promoted to High-A Wilmington, which is notoriously known as a brutal place for hitters in the organization. In fact, Wilmington is such a difficult place to hit that the Nationals had former top prospect Dylan Crews skip the level entirely, as to not ruin his confidence given how hard it is for players not named James Wood to succeed there as a hitter.
In five games since being called up from Low-A Fredericksburg, Sam Peterson is slashing .474/.500/.579 with a 202 wRC+.
— Jordan Weisinger (@jordanweisinger) June 11, 2025
The No. 26 prospect has been nothing short of spectacular so far with the Blue Rocks.pic.twitter.com/G3qy1ZeNFu
But the current #26 prospect in the organization has gotten off to a red-hot start since being bumped up to High-A for the first time, and currently has a .391/.440/.478 slash line, good for a .918 OPS in 6 games with the Blue Rocks. He has racked up 9 hits in 23 at-bats to go along with 2 doubles, 3 RBIs, and 3 stolen bases.
While these numbers aren't exactly gaudy by any means, the fact that he has been so successful in such a short amount of time is a breath of fresh air, and Petersen is beginning to put himself on the organization's radar as an outfielder who could potentially make his way up the prospect rankings. His ceiling is likely that of a 4th outfielder at the big league level, but he does have an intriguing skillset.
He has 45-grade tools for his hit, power, and arm, while his wheels check in with a 60-grade, and his glove has a 55-grade. He will remind Nationals fans a lot of Jacob Young, who is a speed and defense first outfielder that can sometimes provide a spark with the bat. Petersen should have higher upside than Young on the offensive end, and could find his way up the rankings of the system by the end of the season if he can keep this up.
What do you think of the start of Sam Petersen? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.