The 2026 MLB regular season officially concluded on Sunday night and excitement is in the air as the Wild Card Series looms.

As the 18 organizations whose season came to an end Sunday wrap things up alongside the entirety of the minor leagues, it’s time to recap the 18 Nittany Lions who spent time in MLB organizations in 2026.

The group is headlined by Justin Hagenman, who became the first player to go from the blue and white to the majors since David Aardsma in 2015.

RHP Justin Hagenman, New York Mets

Hagenman remains the only player to reach the majors directly out of Penn State since Nate Bump, who last played in 2005. The other two, Aardsma and Logan Evans, transferred from Penn State prior to being drafted.

Originally picked in the 23rd round by the Dodgers in 2018, Hagenman had a 4.64 ERA across 42 starts in three seasons at Penn State from 2016-18 before embarking on his pro career, one that has sent him through three organizations.

After signing a minor league deal with the Mets in December 2024, he made his major league debut on April 16, 2025.

He wasn’t in the Mets’ plans for 2026, but with a spot on the 40-man roster, he had a chance to make an impact. Unfortunately, he underwent surgery on a fractured rib in March and didn’t make it back into game action until mid-August.

By then, the Mets’ season had completely collapsed, giving Hagenman a chance to be part of them playing out the string. He returned on September 2, allowing three runs across eight innings in three games as he nears his 30th birthday.

INF Jay Harry, Toronto Blue Jays (Triple-A)

Jay Harry, selected in the sixth round of the 2023 MLB Draft by the Minnesota Twins after hitting .304 over three seasons at Penn State, enjoyed his 2026 season.

The New Brunswick, New Jersey, native, who joined Toronto in the Trevor Richards trade at the 2024 trade deadline, struggled mightily in 2025 but took a step forward in 2026 after breaking out at Double-A New Hampshire. There he slashed .325/.354/.580 in 48 games.

His strong play there earned the 24-year-old a promotion to Triple-A Buffalo in mid-June, where he slumped to a modest .277/.335/.436 in a very offensively charged league.

Over the season, he combined to hit 14 home runs with 76 RBIs and 46 extra-base hits.

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

An unfortunate reality of the minor league system is that if a player doesn’t stay on a reasonable progression, they quickly become expendable as a new batch of talent is drafted. That yearly roster churn ends hundreds of pro careers every season.

Bailey Dees, who posted a 4.52 ERA over 175.1 innings from 2018-21 with Penn State, was drafted in the 18th round by the Yankees in 2021 but never had a clear role as he progressed through the minors.

Once a back-end reliever, then a starting pitcher, then a long reliever, nothing was ever established for him.

After making his Triple-A debut last season, Dees started 2026 in Double-A Somerset, where he tossed 8.1 innings across four outings before being released on April 24.

He spent the rest of the season as a free agent.

RHP Conor Larkin, Seattle Mariners (Double-A)

Getting released once you’ve reached a certain point in your minor league career happens to many people every season, but a select few get another contract elsewhere to keep their dreams alive, even if it might not be for much longer.

That’s the case with Conor Larkin, who was selected in the ninth round by the Toronto Blue Jays in 2021 after pitching a 4.26 ERA over 171 innings, with 191 strikeouts, in his four years at Penn State from 2018-21.

Larkin slowly worked his way up the minor league ranks, but he initially struggled after each promotion. After spending all of 2025 in Double-A New Hampshire, he started the year there and posted a 1.13 ERA across 16 innings to earn a promotion to Triple-A Buffalo.

Now on the cusp of the majors, the jump hit him like a truck. Over the next few months, he hit a wall, allowing 24 runs in just 14.1 innings and walking 15.

Toronto released him after signing its new draft class in August, but the Mariners latched on later that month.

He was reassigned to Double-A Arkansas, where he allowed 20 earned runs in 10 innings. It’s unclear where his career goes from here.

C Matthew Wood, Milwaukee Brewers (Double-A)

Penn Staters are making progress in the minor leagues, and Matthew Wood is one of them.

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.

Still, his bat took time to catch up as he rose through the ranks as a draft pick the Brewers invested heavily in, earning him a $347,000 signing bonus.

He made his Double-A debut in 2025, but was merely average down the stretch.

This season was a big year for him. In 95 games, the 25-year-old slashed .257/.398/.492 with 18 home runs, 67 RBIs, and 35 extra-base hits.

He’s one of two Nittany Lions whose seasons aren’t quite over yet, as he will go to the Arizona Fall League next week for extra reps.

OF Paxton Kling, Texas Rangers (High-A)

Penn State baseball’s revival under Mike Gambino has yielded some very impressive individual seasons. The defining player of a strong 2025 season, Paxton Kling, is off to a solid start to his pro career.

After being picked in the seventh round last summer, Kling had a decent cup of coffee splitting time in Single-A and High-A before starting the 2026 season in High-A Hub City. He slashed .247/.386/.368 with seven home runs, 31 RBIs, and 38 stolen bases in 84 games.

His progress was partially derailed by a six-week absence over the summer, which delayed his promotion to Double-A Frisco until early September, when he played just five games.

As a result, the Rangers are also sending him to the AFL for more experience.

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

C.J. Pittaro didn’t have much of a legacy in the blue and white. After transferring to Penn State from Vanderbilt following the 2021 season, he had just 129 plate appearances as a Nittany Lion from 2022-24, leading to him going undrafted.

Still, the former Commodore showed something there, as the Athletics scooped him up as an undrafted free agent that summer.

The 24-year-old has been a solid organizational depth piece, spending much of the 2026 season with High-A Lansing and splitting time at first base and left field.

In 85 games, he slashed .218/.341/.249 with one home run and 35 RBIs.

INF Ryan Weingartner, St. Louis Cardinals (High-A)

After transferring from St. Joseph’s, Ryan Weingartner made an impact in his lone season in Happy Valley, setting the program record with 30 stolen bases and posting an .853 OPS as a junior in 2025 before St. Louis selected him in the eighth round of the MLB Draft.

With the Cardinals, the Voorhees, New Jersey, native struggled in a brief cup of coffee in 2025 and spent much of the season in Single-A Palm Beach, where he slashed .226/.366/.384 with 12 home runs, 53 RBIs, and 33 stolen bases.

He earned a late promotion to High-A Peoria in August, but struggled in 15 games there.

RHP Daniel Ouderkirk, Seattle Mariners (Single-A)

Injuries are an unfortunate part of the game and can derail many young players’ professional dreams across all sports.

Daniel Ouderkirk, an 18th-round pick by Seattle in 2023, never seemed to catch a break. Entering the 2026 season, the West Virginia transfer had pitched just five professional innings across his first three years in the organization.

It’s impossible to fight back from those injuries, but he seemed finally healthy entering 2026. He made 13 appearances across rookie ball and Single-A Inland Empire, but pitched to an 8.44 ERA with 18 walks in 16 innings, and was ultimately released at the end of July as the new draftees were signed.

RHP Chase Renner, Miami Marlins (Single-A)

After a strong season as the Nittany Lions’ hardest-throwing reliever in 2025, Renner forwent his final year of eligibility to sign with the Marlins after being selected in the 13th round of the 2025 draft.

In an extremely rare move for a pitcher, he made his pro debut that summer in Single-A Jupiter, but started 2026 in extended spring training.

It wasn’t anything major, as he only appeared in one game with the FCL Marlins before returning to Jupiter in early May, but his season was anything but peaceful from there.

Teams want their hard-throwing college relievers to rise through the minors quickly, and Renner seemed poised to do just that after throwing 6.2 stellar innings across four outings with Jupiter in May, earning a promotion to High-A Beloit on May 26.

There, against stiffer competition, he hit the skids, allowing 12 runs in 12.2 innings with 12 walks and struggling with command before suffering an undisclosed season-ending injury in early August.

He missed much of two seasons with Tommy John surgery at Penn State.

RHP Ryan DeSanto, Cleveland Guardians (Single-A)

The ace of the 2025 Nittany Lions, Ryan DeSanto, was selected in the 12th round that year by the Guardians after a strong senior year at Penn State.

He began the 2026 season in rookie ball for the ACL Guardians, but worked his way up to Single-A Hull City, where he pitched to a 4.66 ERA in 15 starts across 65.2 innings.

Managing the workload of a college starter is always important for organizations to keep prospects healthy, so DeSanto tossing only 82.2 innings total across two levels was likely by design. He’ll look to make progress in 2027.

TWP Michael Anderson, Texas Rangers

Penn State baseball doesn’t have the richest history, but Michael Anderson’s 2026 season will go down as one of the best in program history.

The Arkansas transfer broke the single-season home run record and became the first Nittany Lion to be named a First-Team All-American in 26 years.

Anderson, who exclusively DH’d for the Nittany Lions, was listed as a two-way player when Texas selected him in the fifth round, revealing that he played the 2026 season with a torn UCL in his throwing elbow after attempting to pitch early in the spring.

He did not appear in a game for the Rangers down the stretch, presumably to rehab an injury he ignored to go on a tear throughout Big Ten play.

LHP Colin Fitzgerald, Athletics (Single-A)

While Anderson was the only draft pick that came from the 2026 Nittany Lions, the team’s ace was also scooped up after the draft as an undrafted free agent by the Athletics.

In 2026, Colin Fitzgerald pitched to a 6.51 ERA in 56.2 innings in his lone season in Happy Valley.

It’s uncommon to see pitchers make their pro debuts in their draft year, but the 23-year-old started three games for Single-A Stocktown down the stretch, allowing nine runs in 7.2 innings.

RHP Anthony Steele, Baltimore Orioles (Rookie Ball)

A staple of the Penn State bullpen from 2022-25, Anthony Steele was the team’s closer for much of their successful 2025 season before going undrafted.

After staying home and playing with the State College Spikes of the MLB Draft League, he signed a deal with the Orioles in late April.

He spent much of the year in the minor league complex, eventually getting into six games for the FCL Orioles, where he struggled considerably in 3.1 innings, allowing 10 earned runs on nine walks and four hit-by-pitches.

He was released in early June and spent the rest of the year in an independent league, playing for the Lake Country DockHounds of the American Association.

Additional Players With Penn State Connections

RHP Logan Evans, Seattle Mariners: Just 11 days after Hagenman’s debut, Evans made his major league debut for the Mariners back in April 2025.

He started his collegiate career at Penn State, where he tossed 22.1 innings over two seasons, but transferred to Pitt in 2022 and was eventually drafted in the 12th round in 2023.

He was poised to build on a solid debut season, posting a 4.32 ERA in 81.1 innings for a team that reached the ALCS, but he underwent Tommy John surgery in January and missed the entire season.

RHP Spencer Bivens, San Francisco Giants: A player with Penn State ties appeared between David Aardsma in 2015 and Hagenman in 2025, but he never took the field in blue and white.

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 played in Division II and bounced around independent leagues before getting a shot to climb the minor league ladder, which he did with the Giants. 

After establishing himself as a solid member of the Giants’ bullpen in 2025, he spent much of 2026 in the minors before being designated for assignment and claimed by the Royals off waivers in September. He finished 2026 with just 7.2 choppy innings in the majors between the two bottomfeeders.

RHP Tommy Molsky, Kansas City Royals (Double-A): Molsky began his collegiate career in Happy Valley in 2022 and tossed 95.1 innings across two seasons before transferring to Oklahoma State in 2024.

The Royals drafted him in the 12th round in 2024.

The right-handed reliever had a great 2025 at High-A Quad Cities but struggled in 40 appearances at Double-A Northwest Arkansas, pitching to an 8.75 ERA in 47.1 innings, and was briefly sent back to High-A for two weeks during the summer.

LHP Jordan Morales, Chicago White Sox (Single-A): Unlike Molsky and Evans, Morales started his collegiate career elsewhere, debuting for La Salle in 2020 before transferring to Penn State following the 2021 season.

In two seasons in State College, he pitched 97.2 effective innings as a weekday starter and long reliever.

He used his fifth year of eligibility in 2024 to transfer to Purdue, where he was one of the Big Ten’s most effective starters. After spending 2025 in Indy ball, the White Sox signed him in May, and he pitched 41 strong innings for Single-A Kannapolis, posting a 2.57 ERA with 60 strikeouts.