Penn State in MLB: 2025 Season Recap

Chris Sponagle | Onward State

On Sunday, the 2025 MLB regular season concluded with most teams beginning to make offseason arrangements, while 12 teams prepare to begin their journey for the World Series.

Justin Hagenman, the first player to be drafted out of Penn State to appear in the majors in 20 years, similarly saw his season end with the New York Mets being eliminated from playoff contention after game 162. But while Hagenman was the only Penn State alum to get a taste of the big leagues in 2025, a bunch of former Nittany Lions in the minors continued their journeys to join him in the big leagues. How much closer did they get? Let’s find out.

RHP Justin Hagenman, New York Mets

First, an ode to the man who became the first Penn Stater in the bigs since David Aardsma in 2015 and the first to be drafted out of Penn State since Nate Bump in 2005.

Hagenman, picked in the 23rd round by the Dodgers in 2018, had a 4.64 ERA across 42 starts in three seasons at Penn State from 2016-18. He was shaky all season with Triple-A Syracuse. Still, the Mets had considerable issues with their starting pitching depth throughout the 2025 season. As a result, Hagenman got the call on April 16 to make his major league debut, where he allowed one run in 3.1 innings.

Congrats to Justin Hagenman for recording his first career strikeout! pic.twitter.com/6nBeLcmEvA
— New York Mets (@Mets) April 16, 2025

For the rest of the season, he’d be occasionally called up as a bulk reliever for the Mets, including making his first career start on the Fourth of July against the Yankees. In nine appearances, he pitched to a 4.56 ERA in 23.2 innings. He even picked up his first career save in August after throwing four shutout innings against the Braves.

RHP Spencer Bivens (San Francisco Giants), RHP Logan Evans (Seattle Mariners)

Bivens and Evans get their own section, as while neither was drafted out of Penn State, they spent time in the baseball program. Both played in the majors in 2025.

Bivens, a State College native, committed to Penn State ahead of the 2015 season, but failed a drug test and was kicked off the team. He would play in Division II and bounce around independent leagues before getting a shot to climb the minor league ladder, which he did for the Giants. After making his debut in 2024, he had a 4.00 ERA in 81 innings for San Francisco in 2025.

Evans played two seasons for the Nittany Lions, tossing 22.1 innings in 14 games before transferring to Pittsburgh ahead of the 2022 season. The Mariners would scoop him up in the 12th round in 2023 and he’d make the big leagues in 2025, pitching to a 4.32 ERA in 81.1 innings over 15 starts.

RHP Bailey Dees, New York Yankees (Triple-A)

It was a rocky season for the former 18th-rounder out of Happy Valley. Dees, who had a 4.52 ERA across 175.1 innings from 2018-21 with Penn State, entered the season in Double-A Somerset’s rotation, but struggled with command and had an ERA north of five until he was demoted to High-A Hudson Valley on June 6.

Dees only made one start down in High-A, tossing seven shutout innings before returning to Double-A, albeit in a new role. After spending 2022 and 2023 as a reliever, he was stretched out as a starter in 2024, but never found his footing. Dees was put back in the bullpen as a long reliever in Double-A, where he pitched better and earned his first promotion to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in mid-July and shifted into a one-inning reliever.

Ultimately, the move to the bullpen was a success for Dees, who pitched to a 2.55 ERA in his 35.1 innings as a reliever, striking out 38 and allowing just a .177 batting average against (BAA). If he can hone in his command, he’ll have a chance to crack the Yankees’ bullpen at some point in 2026.

RHP Conor Larkin, Toronto Blue Jays (Double-A)

Larkin was coming off a strong 2024 season with High-A Vancouver, and the Blue Jays promoted him to Double-A to start his age-26 season. The right-handed reliever was a staple in Double-A New Hampshire’s bullpen all season, pitching to a 4.14 ERA in 50 innings with 50 strikeouts. He lowered his walk rate from 2024, but allowed more hits with the tougher competition.

Larkin, picked in the ninth round in 2021, pitched to a 4.26 ERA across 171 innings with 191 strikeouts in his four years at Penn State from 2018-21.

C Matt Wood, Milwaukee Brewers (Double-A)

In 2022, Wood became the highest drafted Nittany Lion in 24 years when the Brewers picked him in the fourth round of the MLB Draft after breaking numerous program records by hitting .340 over three seasons as a catcher, including a stellar .379 in 2022.

Wood appeared to be stagnating as of last season, but took a big step forward in 2025 with a July promotion to Double-A Biloxi. While most players, especially catchers, struggle after hitting Double-A, Wood improved his numbers by slashing .271/.371/.415 with six home runs and 31 RBIs in 59 games, his best numbers since he was briefly in Single-A in early 2023.

2B/OF Jay Harry, Toronto Blue Jays (High-A)

Harry, who hit .304 in three seasons at Penn State before being selected in the sixth round in 2023 by the Minnesota Twins, had a challenging season.

The New Brunswick, New Jersey native, who got to Toronto in the Trevor Richards trade at the 2024 trade deadline, got a brief promotion to Double-A but was sent back down to High-A after slashing just .153/.255/.226 in 41 games. The 23-year-old finished the year with a .199/.284/.288 slashline across 100 games with five home runs and 31 RBI in those two levels.

1B/RF C.J. Pittaro, Athletics (High-A)

Pittaro, who transferred to Penn State from Vanderbilt following the 2021 season, had just 129 plate appearances as a Nittany Lion from 2022-24, leading to him going undrafted.

Despite that, he re-emerged in Single-A for the Athletics earlier this year and earned a late-season promotion to High-A Lansing. In 118 games, Pittaro slashed .232/.334/.299 with 22 extra base hits and 38 RBIs.

RHP Daniel Ouderkirk, Seattle Mariners (Single-A)

Ouderkirk, picked in the 18th round in 2023, has struggled with injuries since departing State College. After pitching 64.2 innings across three seasons at Penn State, he threw three innings in rookie ball in the Mariners’ organization before missing the entire 2024 season.

His injury lingered into 2025, where he only appeared in two games in September with Single-A Modesto, tossing a pair of scoreless innings.

The 2025 Draftees

Five Nittany Lions were selected in the 2025 MLB Draft, with four deciding to sign with their new organizations and Bryce Molinaro electing to return for his redshirt junior season.

Outfielder Paxton Kling, picked in the seventh round by the Texas Rangers, played 21 games after being drafted across Single-A and High-A, slashing .301/.355/.446 with one home run and seven RBIs.

Infielder Ryan Weingartner, selected in the eighth round by the St. Louis Cardinals, struggled in 21 games with Single-A Palm Beach, hitting .145 with a triple, six RBIs, and five stolen bases.

Relief pitcher Chase Renner, picked in the 13th round by the Miami Marlins, pitched in six games for Single-A Jupiter, allowing two runs in seven innings on eight walks and six strikeouts. He ended the season on the injured list.

Starting pitcher Ryan DeSanto, picked in the 12th round by the Cleveland Guardians, did not appear in a minor league game after shouldering a heavy workload as Penn State’s ace in 2025.

All four will look to make good first impressions next season in their first full year of minor league baseball.

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About the Author

Michael Zeno

Michael is a sophomore from Eastampton, NJ, majoring in international politics. He's a diehard Knicks, Yankees, Rangers, and Giants fan. When he's not watching old OBJ highlights, he likes to bowl and play pickup basketball. He'll forever believe that Michael Penix Jr. was short. You can contact him at @MichaelZeno24 on Twitter or [email protected]

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