OSU Cole Hamilton signs free agent deal with Washington Nationals originally appeared on NBC Sports Northwest
Oregon State catcher Cole Hamilton took a big step in his baseball career on Monday, signing a free-agent deal with the Washington Nationals.
Hamilton was drafted by the Nationals in the 23rd round of the 2018 MLB First-Year Player Draft. Rather than go to the pros at the time, Hamilton refined his skills by attended Linn-Benton Community College before eventually transferring to Oregon State.
Hamilton played in six games his first year in Corvallis, starting five of them. He ended the season with a .167 batting average, a .278 slugging percentage, and three RBI.
In 2021, he played in nine games and saw his batting average jump to .318 and his slugging percentage improve to .364.
For his career at OSU, Hamilton holds a .250 batting average, .325 slugging percentage, and an on-base percentage of .375.