Liam Peterson
American baseball player (born 2005)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Liam Scott Peterson (born June 10, 2005) is an American professional baseball pitcher in the Cleveland Guardians organization.
| Liam Peterson | |
|---|---|
Peterson with the Florida Gators in 2026 | |
| Cleveland Guardians | |
| Pitcher | |
| Born: June 10, 2005 Clearwater, Florida, U.S. | |
Bats: Right Throws: Right | |
| Stats at Baseball Reference |
Amateur career
Peterson was born on June 10, 2005, in Clearwater, Florida.[1] His grandfather played college baseball and his mother played volleyball in college.[2] He attended Calvary Christian Academy in Fort Lauderdale, where he played baseball as a pitcher.[3] At Calvary Christian, he posted a record of 10–2 with an earned-run average (ERA) of 1.28 and 141 strikeouts in 76+2⁄3 innings across his last two years.[4] In his senior season, he also was Calvary Christian's leading hitter with a batting average of .484 and five home runs, helping his team to the Class 3A State Championship while being named the 3A Player of the Year.[2]
Although Peterson was considered a potential top-100 selection in the 2023 Major League Baseball draft, he opted to play college baseball for the Florida Gators rather than turning professional.[2][5][6] After his first two starts at Florida in 2024, in which he had seven shutout innings and struck out 13 batters, he was named the Southeastern Conference (SEC) Co-Freshman of the Week.[4] He appeared in 18 games in his freshman season for Florida, pitching 63 innings while posting a record of 3–6 and an ERA of 6.43.[7] Peterson was named to the 2024 SEC All-Freshman team.[8] As a sophomore in 2025, Peterson made 16 appearance and pitched 96 strikeouts in 69+1⁄3 innings, recording an ERA of 4.28 and a record of 8–4.[9][10] He was a member of the USA Collegiate National Team in 2024 and 2025.[11] In 2026, his junior season for the Gators, Peterson made 16 starts and had a 3–6 record, a 4.59 ERA, and 111 strikeouts across 84+1⁄3 innings pitched.[12]
Professional career
Peterson was regarded as a top prospect for the 2026 Major League Baseball draft.[13][14] He was selected by the Cleveland Guardians in the first round with the 19th overall pick.[15] He signed with the Guardians for a $4.5 million signing bonus.[16]