Gage Peterson enjoys being at Appalachian State. He likes the culture of the baseball program, the coaches, and living in Boone.
And he’s ready to give it all up this weekend.
Peterson, a native of Jonesborough, TN, and product of David Crockett High School, is projected to go in the first 10 rounds of the Major League Baseball Amateur Draft, which takes place this weekend. The first four rounds of the draft take place Saturday, with the remaining 16 rounds happening Sunday.
Peterson (6-5, 220) isn’t expected to hear his name called on Saturday, but he should on Sunday. Possibly quite early in the day. As of Wednesday evening, MLB.com had Peterson ranked as the No. 247 overall prospect in the draft. That would put him solidly in the first 10 rounds, which, he said, probably would be high enough for him to bypass his remaining collegiate eligibility.
“I think so. It just really depends on the [signing bonus] number they give me,” Peterson told I-81 Sports during a phone interview on Tuesday. “That new five-in-five rule was pretty big for my class. The dream is to play professional baseball. “
A stellar 2026 season at App State put Peterson on the map to be drafted after playing in the relative obscurity of junior college ball. Granted, Peterson’s JUCO experience came at Walters State in Morristown, TN, one of the most successful programs in the country at that level.
His work for the Mountaineers was a cut above, however. He went 8-1 with a 3.28 ERA and a 1.28 WHIP. Peterson tallied 107 strikeouts against 39 walks. His .196 batting average allowed ranked second in the Sun Belt Conference, which named Peterson as the league’s newcomer of the year and first-team all-conference.
“Even when I hit a few rough stretches, I still kind of kept working and pushing through it,” Peterson said. “I kinda figured it out as time went on.”
Perhaps the most important number for Peterson is 85 — his total number of innings pitched, and the most he’s ever thrown in a single season, at any level. Peterson credited the strength and conditioning program at App State for helping him shoulder such a workload.
“Being in the weight room helped me a lot. I feel like I was able to maintain my velo throughout the year, even with the higher workload I had,” Peterson said. “Getting my body to move better. Being a lot stronger. I think that’s a big part of it. … Here it’s having that structured plan. It was really big for me.”
Peterson currently has a four pitch arsenal — fastball, curveball, changeup, slider — and tends to stick with three pitches in any given outing. Developing the ability to throw the changeup to both sides of the plate, another augmentation to his skill set within the past year, proved to be a real game changer.
“I fell in love with the changeup this year,” he said, adding, “I threw it a little bit last year and then I kind of lost the feel for it a little bit. I changed the grip up. In the fall, it was pretty good. In the spring, I thought it was one of my best pitches.”
From a personal standpoint, establishing himself as the Saturday starter at App State meant plenty to Peterson. It allowed both his parents to come to games, because it’s the one day that fit both of their work schedules.
“If I threw on Fridays, dad wouldn’t be able to come. Sundays, my mom wouldn’t be able to come,” he said.
In the lead-up to the draft, Peterson decided not to pursue any summer league opportunities. He also didn’t go to work out in person for any MLB teams. Peterson acknowledged he had invites from seven or eight teams to come pitch. Instead, he chose to give his arm a break, though he’s continued to work out in Boone, and had plenty of conversations with coaches and scouts.
He doesn’t have any elaborate plans for draft weekend: just hang out with some friends, near a grill and a pool.
And wait.
“I’m just really grateful for the opportunity,” Peterson said.