For the second straight year, the Nevada baseball team’s Friday ace has pitched his way to a professional contract.

Peyton Fosher, who was a 19th-round draft pick by the Miami Marlins last week, has signed with the team and will forgo his final season of college, Wolf Pack head coach Jake McKinley confirmed to NSN on Tuesday. FishOnFirst reported Fosher’s signing bonus is for $100,000, the same amount as the Marlins’ picks in rounds 11-18. Picks in rounds 11-20 can sign for up to $150,000 without the team being required to count those bonuses against their assigned bonus pool.

A native of Tomball, Texas, Fosher joined Nevada in 2024 after a season at Angelina College in Lufkin, Texas. He started 29 games over those two seasons with the Wolf Pack, all starts. In those years, Fosher went 9-10 with a 6.39 ERA, striking out 124 batters in 138 innings against 47 walks. As a junior last season, Fosher moved into the Wolf Pack’s Friday role reserved for the team’s ace. He went 6-4 with a 5.75 ERA in 15 starts, striking out 77 batters in 76.2 innings.

Fosher had the option of returning to Nevada for his senior season, although he would have been looking at a significantly smaller signing bonus had he been drafted again in 2026 with no years of remaining college eligibility. Fosher replaced Jason Doktorczyk as Nevada’s Friday starter this year after Doktorczyk was a ninth-round pick by the Minnesota Twins in 2024. Doktorczyk signed for a $187,000 bonus.

Listed at 6-feet and 215 pounds, Fosher doesn’t have ideal starting size but proved to be a physical pitcher during his time at Nevada who could run his fastball into the mid-90s, which drew the interest of scouts. He had a career-high nine strikeouts in his first start last season at Cal. He tied that mark later in the year against Washington State when he tossed seven scoreless innings, allowing just three hits.

Nevada is expected to lose two of its four starting pitchers from last season with the departure of Casey Burfield, who entered the transfer portal as he will look for a sixth year of college eligibility. Fellow starters Alessandro Castro (5-3, 5.33 ERA) and Jayce Dobie (2-2, 6.07 ERA) return. Nevada also has earned a commitment this offseason from Santa Rosa Junior College’s Luke Schat, a ABCA/Rawlings National Pitcher of the Year who went 8-1 with five saves and a 0.71 ERA in 63.2 innings last season. He struck out 91 batters.