Meet ’Topes hurler Michael Petersen
Dependable late-inning reliever is seemingly on his way to the big leagues
Saturday
Who: Mariachis de Nuevo Mexico (Albuquerque Isotopes) vs. Las Vegas Aviators When: First pitch is set for 6:35 p.m. at Isotopes Park; fireworks after the game Red vs. Green: The night’s menu will include eight special red chile items being sold down the first base line side of the concourse and eight special green chile items being sold down the third base side of the ball park.
When All-Star third baseman Nolan Arenado dug into the batters box for Team USA in the World Baseball Classic against Great Britain back in March, the assumption was it might be just another painful reminder for Colorado Rockies fans of just how good their former favorite son is at the plate.
Instead, it may have just been an unexpected glimpse into a bright future.
Staring Arenado down from the mound was 6-foot-7 right-handed reliever Michael Petersen — then a 28-year-old career minor leaguer who was born in London to an American father and Nigerian mother and had seen almost no game action in three years due to COVID-19, Tommy John surgery and other injuries. Three pitches. Three strikes. The third being a chest-high 100 mph, four-seam fastball Arenado had no chance of catching up to.
Today, the “who is that guy” on the mound back in March is throwing heat for the Albuquerque Isotopes with more than just a deadly fastball. Petersen, who was born in Great Britain and grew up in California, also brings a worldly, multicultural background and perspective on the game that has him handling the grind of Minor League Baseball with a refreshingly upbeat energy.
Petersen, who was called up to the Triple-A Isotopes in early July and has solidified himself as one of, if not the most dependable late-inning reliever for the team with an
ERA of 1.00 in eight appearances. He’s allowed one earned run, six hits and two walks in 9.0 innings pitched while striking out nine hitters and regularly hitting 100 mph on the radar gun with his four-seam fastball.
“I hate to use the word adversity because it’s kind of a playedout word,” Petersen said Friday while interviewed in the dugout of Isotopes Park, “but I have pushed through a lot of struggles the last couple seasons and just being able to get out there see a hitter and say, ‘Hey, me versus you. Let’s see who wins.’ It’s been really fun.”
Worth the wait
The former 17th round draft pick of the Milwaukee Brewers in 2015 out of Riverside (Calif.) City College was topping off at 97-98 mph with his two-seem fastball and also threw a solid curve and changeup at High-A Carolina in 2019 when the Rockies took a chance on him in that year’s Rule 5 Draft.
Then, like many players who were entering the crucial development years of their career around 2020 when COVID-19 hit and shut down the sports world, Petersen seemingly fell off the national radar.
Throw in his undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2021 and Petersen simply wasn’t playing in any games (he appeared in one Rookie League level game in August 2022).
But Rockies Director of Player Development Chris Forbes told MLB.com in March Petersen’s been worth the wait.
“Just to get him in a Rockies uniform and out on the mound is exciting,” Forbes said. “We re-signed him twice while he was rehabbing. If everything lines up and he’s holding the strike zone … he looks like a leverage innings guy, somewhere in the back of the bullpen.”
Petersen said he enjoys the pressure of late-game, eighthor ninth-inning situations and doesn’t seem to mind, even as a fly-ball pitcher, throwing in the thin air of hitter-friendly Isotopes Park.
“They still have to tag it for it to get out, so just don’t let them do it,” he said with a smile.
Worldly perspective
Now seemingly on his way to a potential Major League call up, the now-29-year-old Petersen says he’s gained a strong perspective on his journey — enjoy every minute of it.
Donning a bright yellow head band with a red Zia symbol on the front reminiscent of New Mexico’s state flag, he said among the first things he did when getting to Albuquerque was try green chile and visit Santa Fe. He hopes to get to Taos sometime soon.
“There’s not many jobs (like professional baseball) where you get to see so much of the world. And it’s kind of a shame if you go somewhere new and don’t try it,” Petersen said.
His own background is a big reason for his embrace-all-cultures attitude, he admits.
Petersen, who is an identical twin, laughs at the question about how his California dad met his Nigerian mom.
The long and short of it is this: His dad was doing business in Nigeria and met his mom. Some time later, they met up in London (where Nigerians often do business) and lived for a short time. It’s where he he and his brother were born.
“Yeah, it’s a wild one,” he said of the story, before acknowledging he hasn’t prioritized thinking of his parents meeting and falling in love. “I need to ask more questions of it, but every time I get the willies, so I leave it alone.”
His parents were athletes — dad a volleyball player and downhill skier, mom a track star.
Petersen said he’s grateful for his multi-cultural background and embraces every part of what made him who he is today.