Make a wish! Nats' 2024 first-rounder clubs first pro homer on his birthday

It’s hard to conjure up a better birthday gift than this.

After getting a brief (and homer-less) taste of pro ball last summer, Seaver King mashed his first pro long ball in High-A Wilmington's 4-3 loss to visiting Aberdeen on Friday night at Daniel S. Frawley Stadium. The Nationals' No. 4 prospect added a single and is riding a seven-game hit streak after opening the year 3-for-35.

King, the 10th overall pick by the Nationals in 2024, had a productive season for Single-A Fredericksburg in his first pro stint. He slashed .295/.367/.385 in 20 games, notching 23 hits, three triples and 10 RBIs. He also swiped 10 bags.

But the long ball eluded him in ‘24, and through 15 games in cold northeast environments in ‘25, he still had not cleared the fences. A new year of life though, brought about new beginnings for King, who teed off on a 1-1 breaking ball in the bottom of the sixth inning.

IronBirds hurler Riley Cooper, a lefty sidearmer, went middle-outside with the pitch. King waited on it, squaring his hands and roping it over the left-center-field wall.

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King has shown potent power throughout his career, impressing scouts with 16 jacks during his junior season at Wake Forest. He's mostly been hit-over-power -- and dynamic on the basepaths with 16 steals in 17 attempts -- thus far since signing, but now at age 22, he can add one more notch to his professional belt.