This story was excerpted from Jessica Camerato's Nationals Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Nationals No. 7 prospect Luke Dickerson was busy. As in, really busy.
The multisport standout juggled a packed calendar of two sports simultaneously, seasons overlapping, while he excelled.
¡°It was definitely difficult because I was playing the same seasons -- football and hockey, and then lacrosse and baseball,¡± Dickerson, 19, said. ¡°I was trying everything. Once I got to high school, I kind of had to sit down and be like, ¡®Which ones do I really want to continue to play?¡¯ So I narrowed it down to hockey and baseball.¡±
Dickerson earned the 2024 New Jersey High School Baseball Player of the Year Award at Morris Knolls High School in Rockaway. He tied the state¡¯s single-season home run record (18) set by Mike Trout and Ashton Bardzell.
Dickerson tallied plenty of team awards, too. He led the Golden Eagles to consecutive baseball state titles in 2023 and ¡®24. In hockey, his team won the 2024 NJSIAA state championship.
Of all his sports, Dickerson pursued baseball professionally. When he entered the Draft out of high school, MLB Pipeline ranked him as the No. 49 overall prospect. Dickerson was selected in the second round by the Nationals, and his $3.8 million bonus was the highest in the Draft bonus-pool era outside of the first and supplemental first rounds.
¡°I think it¡¯s really good because I feel like other sports teach you different skills that you can apply and use for baseball,¡± Dickerson said. ¡°Being able to do other sports and staying athletic has definitely helped me.¡±
MLB.com sat down with Dickerson at the 2025 Spring Breakout to reflect on how each sport impacted his baseball success. And he has made time for a hobby, too.
Baseball: Shortstop
¡°Being a shortstop is definitely one of the priority positions. I feel like it¡¯s being a captain, having to lead the infield. Using all those skills from those other sports, being able to lead and make tough plays, being athletic. You don't really know where the ball is going to be hit, how hard it's going to be hit, so just making those adjustments. You have to make adjustments in every game, so it's definitely helped.¡±
Hockey: Center
¡°I feel like hockey is just like that grit and that grittiness. It¡¯s a fast-paced, hitting game. In baseball, you can honestly use that in the box battling. You need to be gritty. It's a gritty sport as well.¡±
Football: Running back, safety
¡°It¡¯s a tough sport, a fast-moving sport. You¡¯ve got to be really smart for that, memorizing all the plays and reading stuff. That's the smartness I feel like you can bring to baseball.¡±
Lacrosse: Midfielder, face-offs
¡°That's another fast-moving [sport]. You need good hand-eye [coordination], being able to shoot, catch, pass, everything. So that definitely helps for baseball.¡±
Basketball: Shooting guard
¡°I played basketball in middle school, being athletic and everything.¡±
Hobby: Fishing
¡°[I¡¯ve been fishing] probably since I can remember, for a long time now. I've been fishing here in Florida, these ponds back here are great spots. Then back home in Jersey, my buddy's got a little boat we go out on in the mornings. ¡ I go for freshwater bass. I think in certain areas, the fish are bigger here [in Florida].¡±