NC State’s 2026 roster continues to take shape with the addition of James Madison transfer infielder Wyatt Peifer. The 2024 Rawlings Gold Glove winner has shifted between the two left side infield positions during his Dukes career, playing in 115 games at third base while also appearing in 43 games at shortstop. He also played in one game as a freshman at second base for JMU, but that little guy? I wouldn’t worry about that little guy.
Peifer was a three-year starter for JMU, having 142 starts under his belt among the total 154 games played. The 2024 season was his standout campaign as he hit .305/.409/.495, 19 2B, 5 HR, 11.1 BB%, 17.5 K%, 8-11 SB for a Dukes squad that ended its season in the Raleigh Regional (he went 1-for-4 with a 2B and 2 K in JMU’s season-ending loss to NC State in the finale of that Regional). This past season saw his numbers dip back with a line of .241/.313/.382, 10 2B, 6 HR, 7.5 BB%, 18.8 K%, 10-10 SB. Across the entirety of his time at JMU, Peifer hit .268/.357/.412, 33 2B, 11 HR, 8.8 BB%, 19.2 K%, 20-24 SB.
The switch-hitting Pennsylvania native is currently tearing it up in the Valley League with a line of .397/.526/.534, 7 2B, 1 HR, 18.9 BB%, 8.4 K%, 11-12 SB for the Staunton Braves.
This is a nice addition for NC State: a glove-first infielder with defensive flexibility and an exhibited ability to produce at a high-level with the bat. Peifer’s 2025 regression can be explained a bit by some bad batted-ball luck (.271 BABIP, down from .347 and .361 over his first two years, respectively). The biggest issue this past season was the decline in his walk rate (down from 11.1% to 7.5%), although that could also be a result of his pressing due to the hits not falling.
The truth is Peifer is probably somewhere between those 2024 and 2025 numbers, especially accounting for the increase in competition he’ll be facing in moving from the Sun Belt to the ACC.
This addition puts the Wolfpack’s roster at 35 ahead of this coming weekend’s MLB Draft. While that figure is over the 34-man limit, NC State – should it somehow get through the Draft without losing a single player (spoiler alert: it won’t) – could exceed that limit by labeling one of the returning players as “grandfathered” rostered.
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