Liam Peterson will look to join rare company in Florida baseball history as a first-round pick in the Major League Baseball Draft.
Should Peterson get taken in the first round, he would become the 21st Gator to be selected and the 15th under head coach Kevin O’Sullivan.
The junior from Palm Harbor, Florida, made 16 starts on the mound as a member of the weekend rotation for a third straight season.
Peterson registered a 4.59 ERA and a 1.42 WHIP, while racking up 111 strikeouts against 36 walks in 84 1/3 innings of work. His strikeout total ranked seventh in the SEC and 25th nationally.
He completed five full innings in 12 of his 16 starts while pitching at least seven innings three times.
In his career, Peterson totaled a win-loss record of 14-16, a 5.03 ERA and 204 strikeouts to 112 walks in over 216 innings.
Here is where Peterson stands in projections ahead of the start of the draft on July 11.
MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo
No. 17 Liam Peterson
“If any of the college bats that came off the board filter down here, the Astros very well could go in that direction, and there are others they could consider, such as Strosnider, Zion Rose or Golden Spikes Award winner Daniel Jackson, but you’ll see below that they could get Jackson with their next pick, while nabbing a top college arm here instead.”
Perfect Game
No. 16 Texas Rangers
Peterson has some of the biggest upside in the class, but does come with some risk. The Florida right-hander features power stuff and can look like the best arm in the class when he is at his best. Command issues bring a fair amount of risk to the profile, but the upside might be too good to turn down here.
The Athletic’s Keith Law
No. 13 St. Louis Cardinals
“Peterson is similar to their top two picks from last year — guys with premium stuff and arm strength who need some help with pitch “shapes.”
Reach Florida Gators writer Andrew Abadie at AAbadie@usatodayco.com or on X (formerly Twitter) at @AndrewAbadie. You can also find him on Facebook at Andrew Abadie Sports Reporter or on Instagram @andrewabadie_sports.
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Where might Florida baseball’s Liam Peterson land in 2026 MLB Draft?
Reporting by Andrew Abadie, Gainesville Sun / The Gainesville Sun
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By Andrew Abadie, Gainesville Sun | USA TODAY Network
