The first Gamecock is off the board as outfielder Ethan Petry is heading to the Washington Nationals in the second round of the 2025 MLB Draft.
Petry is the second pick for a Nationals team that selected Fort Cobb-Broxton High School short stop Eli Willits with the first overall pick in tonight's draft. The star South Carolina star outfielder was named a top 50 prospect in the draft and was ultimately selected 49th overall.
An injury riddled 2025 cut his Gamecocks career shorter than expected, but it was an impressive time spent in the Garnet and Black. He appeared in 168 games, making 596 plate appearances, and etched his name into the South Carolina history books before it was all said and done.
The Nationals got a great one @ethanpetry23 #Gamecocks | #ForeverToThee pic.twitter.com/0wtcStvLaw
— South Carolina Baseball (@GamecockBasebll) July 14, 2025
With nearly 600 at bats in a Gamecocks' uniform, Petry has a .336 batting average, 162 RBIs, .700 slugging percentage (South Carolina record), 1.117 ops (South Carolina record), and 56 home runs - six shy of the all-time record held by Justin Smoak (62).
The 2025 MLB Draft continues tonight and will wrap up with the third round. Day two begins on July 14 at 11:30 am (ET) with rounds 4-20 live on the MLB Network. Over 600 prospects will hear their names called in this year's draft.
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