Steve Drumwright

The last pick of the day for the Padres comes courtesy of the compensation pick for Dylan Cease signing with the Blue Jays. The Friars took Oklahoma State outfielder Alex Conover, another left-handed hitter who has some pop. Solid first day for the Padres. Coleman Borthwick easily the flashiest of the Padres' pick. He could be a workhorse at the front of the rotation.

With their final pick on the first day of the 2026 MLB Draft, the San Diego Padres got their first power bat. That came in the form of Oklahoma State junior outfielder Alex Conover, who was taken with a compensation pick in the fourth round, the 134th overall selection. The Friars received this pick as a result of the qualifying offer given to right-handed starter Dylan Cease, who signed with the Toronto Blue Jays for seven years and $210 million in free agency. The 134th pick has a $563,900 bonus slot. Another left-handed bat, the 6-foot-4, 202-pound Conover slashed .357/.476/.625 at Oklahoma State with 14 homers, 37 RBIs and 16 stolen bases. All of his tools were given a 50-grade on the 20-80 scouting scale by MLB Pipeline. He made huge strides in cutting his chase rate from 2025 to 2026, going from 26% down to 19%. He rarely swings and misses when the ball is in the zone and does go gap-to-gap. One drawback is he does tend to hit too many groundballs. Conover also has solid speed but played mostly left field at Oklahoma State, though he did see action in center. His arm is rather average, which probably leaves him in left with first base also a possibility. As a minor bonus, he did catch in high school. View full rumor

Not that the San Diego Padres needed additional catching depth, but they went out and drafted another backstop. With the first of two fourth-round selections, the Padres selected George Washington junior catcher Robbie Lavey with the 124th overall pick. The 6-foot-2, 215-pound left-handed hitter had a .339/.462/.526 slash line this season with 20 extra-base hits and 37 RBIs. His slot number is $620,300. Lavey is 20 years old. Lavey does a lot of things very well, but nothing overly well. His best trait is his arm, which has been graded as 55 on the 20-80 scouting scale. He is a line-drive hitter who makes good contact and can drive the ball. Defensively, he might need some work, but is a positive there more than a detriment behind the plate. The Padres have good catchers at every level, led by No. 1 prospect Ethan Salas. View full rumor

After going undrafted out of high school, right-handed starter Ryan Lynch bolstered his profile high enough for the San Diego Padres to select him in the third round (97th overall pick) in the 2026 MLB Draft. Lynch finished his sophomore season as part of North Carolina's starting rotation, posting a 4.21 ERA with 36 walks and 89 strikeouts over 98⅓ innings in 19 games, all but one a start. Lynch has a tremendous sinker that has reached 98 mph and sits at 94-96 mph. He also has a 83-85 mph slider that shows good depth. He also has a changeup that needs more development. At 6-foot-4 and 215 pounds, he has an excellent frame, yet didn't have big strikeout numbers this year. He did excel in a relief role as a freshman and some see him more in that role than as a starter, with the potential of being a closer if he goes to the bullpen. The 97th pick has a bonus slotted at $808,100. DiamondCentric's Jamie Cameron had this to say about Lynch, who was 95th on his big board: "Lynch is a young for the class college pitcher who will turn 21 a month before the draft. He's occupied a number of roles in his two years for the Tar Heels, beginning as a reliever, before transitioning into a starting role in 2026. It's a frame with ingredients for starting. Lynch stands 6'3, 235 pounds and can maintain his velocity into his outings. There's some interesting release traits too, as Lynch gets good extension and throws from a low release height. There's interesting stuff, too. His best pitch is a power sinker with a ton of run. It typically sits 94 mph but has been up to 97 mph. Lynch frequently mixes in a slider with some depth and sweep, a curveball, and a changeup, although he relies on his sinker/slider combo. Results have been mixed as a full time starter in 2026 and there's some reliever risk here until Lynch can more consistently tap into a more diverse arsenal with regularity and effectiveness. Lynch ended 2026 with a 4.88 FIP in 98.1 innings of work, striking out 20.3% of hitters and walking 8.2%." He has delivery of more of a slinger, which helps with deception on his pitches and could also lead to some of his control issues. View full rumor

Padres go with Canadian shortstop Elliot Lascelles with the 60th pick, their second-round choice. Good hit profile. Not sure if he will stick at shortstop with some questions about his arm, although the Padres will give him every chance there. Also runs track and brings good speed. Not a ton of power, but as an 18-year-old, that could come. Another underslot draft pick, so there would seem to be a riskier selection coming up. Is committed to Yale.

The San Diego Padres went north of the border for their second pick in the 2026 MLB Draft. Canadian shortop Elliot Lascelles was taken by the Padres with their second-round selection, the 60th overall pick. Lascalles played at Upper Canada College High School in Toronto. The 18-year-old is one of the top Canadian prospects in this year's draft. A 6-foot-2, 195-pound left-handed hitter, the 18-year-old is committed to Yale. But with being taken where he was and being further down most rankings, Lascelles figures to be an easy sign. The bonus allotment for the 60th pick is $1,561,000. Lascelles is a hit-first player who may have to move off of shortstop due to questionable arm strength, although second base is definitely an option. DiamondCentric's Jamie Cameron had this to say about Lascelles, who was 89th on his big board: "Lascelles is a Yale commit who is the best position player prospect out of Canada in the 2026 class. At 6'2, 190, he's grown and added size and strength in the last twelve months to a profile that has started to be more heavily scrutinized by scouts. Lascelles hits left handed, with some pre-swing waggle in his stance and a slightly unorthodox look. His swing isn't the smoothest, and it doesn't look like Lascelles gets into his lower half as much as he might, potentially limiting his power output. What there's plenty of, is bat-to-ball skills. Lascelles has exceptional hand-eye coordination and almost never strikes out, a tendency he combined with a ton of discipline in his at-bats. While he may move off shortstop long term due to a fringy arm, Lascelles should stick in the dirt, possibly at second base. He's a plus runner and a threat on the base paths. If he's to add more power, there's some swing work to do, but Lascelles has the most important tool in his bag." Lascelles has built up his stock through Baseball Canada and in high school. He is a line-drive hitter who doesn't possess a ton of power, although that could come with some swing adjustments. This spring, he was on a team that toured Arizona and Florida and faced mostly minor-league arms. He hit .389 with four extra-base hits in 59 at-bats. He has a bit of an unusual setup at the plate with his elbows being far apart and a steep bat path, but those are things the Padres can work on once he signs. He also doesn't chase much, limiting his strikeouts, and goes gap-to-gap with ease. Lascelles is a two-sport star, also running track. He could be an excellent baserunner with borderline plus speed, which will help him in the middle infield. His hit tool will carry him early in his career as his body develops, potentially bringing a little more power to the forefront of his game. View full article

We are now in the second round and about 10 picks before the Padres pick. This is the space in the MLB Draft where front offices make or break their draft. Overslot deals are often made to lure players to pro ball instead of their college commitments.

Coleman Borthwick is the pick. Big right-hander out of a Florida high school. Good velocity on fastball and slider. While committed to Auburn, being taken 21st, which is above where most had him going, would seem to make him an easy sign and move money to other Day 1 picks.

The draft fed right into the San Diego Padres' philosophy, so they didn't have to zig, although they did zag a bit. With the 21st pick in Saturday's MLB Draft, the Padres selected Florida high school right-hander Coleman Borthwick. The 6-foot-6, 245-pounder, who played at South Walton High School in Santa Rosa Beach, Fla., was the fourth pitcher, high school or college, off the board and the third straight prep pitcher the Friars picked The Padres took left-handers Kash Mayfield and Kruz Schoolcraft, respectively, in the last two years. Mayfield is pitching this weekend in the Futures Game as part of the All-Star Game festivities and is currently Padres Mission's No. 2 prospect, while Schoolcraft is our No. 5 prospect. Borthwick, an Auburn commit, is the 10th consecutive prep player overall under president of baseball operations and general manager A.J. Preller. The slot value for the 21st pick is $4,224,700. Draft picks have until July 27 to sign. Considering most outlets had Borthwick further down on their rankings, he would seem to be an easy sign with money from his slot being distributed to other picks. Borthwick is 18 years old and played under his dad in high school. He put on about 10 pounds since last year and his fastball was up to 98 mph on last year's summer circuit, then touching 100 mph this spring during the high school season. He also has a mid-80s slider with a lot of snap and a mid-80s changeup. The slider is a very nice complement to his fastball, while the changeup needs a bit of work. However, some have questioned his low arm slot, something that has been credited for how effective his fastball is, but can also be cleaned up as he enters pro ball. DiamondCentric's Jamie Cameron had this to say about Borthwick, who was 27th on his big board: "Borthwick is a physical monster out of Florida, built more like an NFL linebacker than a high school baseball player. Standing at 6'6, 255 pounds, he's an exciting two way prospect, but most believe his future is on the mound. It's a slightly crossfire delivery which helps to create a more unusual angle for hitters as he strides down the mound. However it looks, there's a ton of quality in the stuff. Borthwick recently ran his fastball up to 100 mph for the first time. It's a pitch that will sit 94-96 mph with plenty of run. It's paired with a quality slider, a pitch that might already be plus. It sits in the mid-80s with some sharp, late tilt. Borthwick has a changeup in the bank too, but it's been used sparingly to date. Borthwick has been a more effective strike thrower to date than you might expect from a frame his size and such an explosive arsenal. He's committed to Auburn but has T30 pick upside." His fastball received a 70-grade from Baseball America and his control a 55 from Baseball American and MLB Pipeline. Baseball America ranked his fastball and breaking ball (slider) among the top five for high school pitchers in this draft. Borthwick was a two-way star as a power-hitting third baseman, drawing comparisons to Austin Riley, but that route is unlikely to be explored by the Padres, even though it does show some of his athleticism. On the mound this spring, he went 11-0 with a 0.21 ERA, .082 opponent average and 12.9 strikeouts per seven innings. At the plate, he hit .460 with nine homers and 34 RBIs for a 1.498 OPS. South Walton (30-4) was ranked No. 1 in the state and won the state title for the first time in program history. Borthwick was named the Gatorade Player of the Year for Florida. It wouldn't be surprising to see Borthwick, like Schoolcraft, make a start or two at Low-A Lake Elsinore this fall, then open 2027 with the Storm. Borthwick is not as much of a project as Schoolcraft, so could move quicker through the system than last year's 25th overall pick. View full article

Gio Rojas just went at No. 16 to the Rangers. He had been a potential Padres pick as some thought the top high school left-hander in the draft could fall. He didn't. Logan Schmidt, a SoCal left-hander, is next in line among prep lefties, which is what the Padres have picked the last two seasons.

A few surprises in the top 10, but nothing too unusual. Biggest one was LSU outfielder Derek Curiel going to the Pirates at No. 5 in what is likely an underslot deal for to redistribute money to their next pick or two. Only one pitcher has gone this far, which might be more surprising.

The draft starts with a chalk pick: UCLA shortstop Roch Cholowsky goes No. 1 overall to the Chicago White Sox. Has been the pick since last year's draft.

This could be the year that A.J. Preller takes a college guy with the Padres' top pick. Last time that happened was with his first first-round pick and Preller took Stanford righty Cal Quantrill. There could be some prep players that the Padres like -- third baseman Bo Lowrance is a popular name -- so we shall see.

The four full-season San Diego Padres affiliates split their four games as the Triple-A El Paso Chihuahuas lost 10-5, the Double-A San Antonio Missions held on for an 8-7 win over Midland, the High-A Fort Wayne TinCaps topped West Michigan 6-3 and the Low-A Lake Elsinore Storm were walked off by Rancho Cucamonga 5-4. Padres Minor-League Transactions San Diego Padres signed free-agent LF Dustin Harris to a minor-league contract and assigned him to El Paso Chihuahuas. Too Many Walks By Chihuahuas Pitchers Fuel Comets Despite five players having multihit games, the Triple-A El Paso Chihuahuas gave up three first-inning runs and couldn't recover en route to a 10-5 loss to the host Oklahoma City Comets. The Chihuahuas outhit the Comets 14-13, but El Paso pitchers issued 10 walks. Padres catcher Freddy Fermin, on a rehab assignment, did not play. Nick Pratto went 3-for-3 with three RBIs, including a homer, and walked twice, while Clay Dungan, Nate Mondou, Mason McCoy and Nick Solak—the top four hitters in the lineup—each had two hits. Dungan scored twice, while McCoy had an RBI and Mondou scored once. Pratto's outburst came after an 0-for-4, four-strikeout game. Chihuahuas right-handed starter Miguel Cienfuegos allowed three runs (two earned) on four hits and three walks with four strikeouts in 2⅓ innings. Right-hander Johan Moreno gave up three runs in 1⅔ innings with four punchouts. Right-handers Andrew Moore (one inning) and Logan Gillaspie (1⅓ innings) each gave up a run, while right-hander Justin Yeager yielded a pair of runs in the eighth inning. The Comets scored three in the bottom of the first off Cienfuegos, two on a Jack Suwinski double, then Pratto hit his eighth homer of the season and third since signing with the Padres a month ago Friday. The Comets pulled away with four runs in the fifth, another in the sixth and two more in the seventh after McCoy singled home a run in the top of the seventh. The Chihuahuas made it more respectable with a three-run ninth inning, with Pratto singling home a pair of runs and Blake Hunt another. EP_0710.mp4 Player AB R H RBI BB K Clay Dungan 4 2 2 0 1 1 Nate Mondou 4 1 2 0 0 1 Mason McCoy 5 0 2 1 0 1 Nick Solak 4 0 2 0 1 0 Nick Schnell 4 1 0 0 1 2 Nick Pratto 3 1 3 3 2 0 Blake Hunt 5 0 1 1 0 2 Romeo Sanabria 5 0 1 0 0 0 Bryce Johnson 5 0 1 0 0 3 Player IP H R ER BB K HR Miguel Cienfuegos 2 1/3 4 3 2 3 4 0 Johan Moreno 1 2/3 2 3 3 1 4 0 Andrew Moore 1 1 1 1 3 0 0 Logan Gillaspie 1 1/3 2 1 1 2 2 1 Justin Yeager 1 2/3 4 2 2 1 1 1 Ethan Salas Sparks Missions As Eric Yost Fans 7 Ethan Salas went 3-for-4 in his final game before heading to Philadelphia for Sunday's Futures Game, while right-handed starter Eric Yost punched out seven in five innings as the Double-A San Antonio Missions held off a late flurry by the Midland RockHounds for an 8-7 triumph. Salas is Padres Mission's No. 1 prospect. Wyatt Hoffman had a homer among his two hits, two RBIs and a run scored and Jake Cunningham a pair of hits, an RBI and two runs scored for the Missions, who had a 6-1 after the top of the seventh. Cunningham and Albert Fabian drove in runs in the top of the first off former Padres prospect Henry Baez, with the RockHounds getting one back in the bottom half. Hoffman then hit his first homer of the season, a solo shot and his first since 2024, with one out in the fourth and Brendan Durfee had an RBI single in the sixth to put the Missions up 4-1. In the seventh, Kai Roberts squeezed home a run and Hoffman singled in another to boost the lead to 6-1. But old friend Leo De Vries, the Padres' top prospect last season before being traded in the Mason Miller deal with the A's, hit a three-run homer, his 11th, to bring the RockHounds within 6-4. Ornelas opened the lead up a bit with an RBI double, his 22nd, to plate Salas and scored on a wild pitch for an 8-4 advantage. De Vries capped a three-run seventh with an RBI double to trim the Missions' lead to 8-7. Yost gave up six hits and one run with four walks and those seven punchouts in five innings. Right-handers Josh Mallitz (1⅔ innings) and Ryan Och (two-thirds) each gave up three runs. Right-hander Sadrac Franco, who surrendered the double to De Vries, got his second save of the season by notching the final four outs, including a perfect ninth. SA_0710.mp4 Player AB R H RBI BB K Ryan Jackson 5 1 1 0 0 1 Ethan Salas 4 1 3 0 1 0 Tirso Ornelas 4 1 1 1 1 1 Jake Cunningham 5 2 2 1 0 1 Albert Fabian 5 0 1 1 0 1 Francisco Acuna 2 2 0 0 3 1 Kai Roberts 2 0 0 1 1 1 Wyatt Hoffman 5 1 2 2 0 1 Brendan Durfee 4 0 1 1 0 1 Player IP H R ER BB K HR Eric Yost 5 6 1 1 4 7 0 Josh Mallitz 1 2/3 2 3 3 1 1 1 Ryan Och 2/3 3 3 3 1 0 0 Sadrac Franco 1 2/3 1 0 0 1 1 0 Alex McCoy, Abraham Parra Help TinCaps Break Losing Streak At 4 Alex McCoy drove in three runs, Justin DeCriscio and Ryan Wideman each went 3-for-5 and right-handed starter Abraham Parra spun five innings of one-run ball as the High-A Fort Wayne TinCaps snapped a four-game losing streak with a 6-3 triumph over the host West Michigan Whitecaps. Luke Cantwell hit an insurance solo homer in the seventh inning as the TinCaps, blanked twice during this miniskid, busted out for 16 hits and drew five walks. Cantwell and Kerrington Cross each had a pair of hits. Parra, filling the Friday starter role usually occupied by Kash Mayfield who is slated to pitch in Sunday's Futures Game, allowed five hits and a run over five innings with two walks and two strikeouts. Left-hander Igor Gil followed with 2⅔ innings in which he gave up two runs (one earned) on two hits, two walks and three strikeouts. Right-hander Clark Candiotti, in his second appearance since coming down from Double-A San Antonio, went the final 1⅓ shutout innings for his second career save, both coming this year. But it was the offense's night. The top two hitters in the lineup, DeCriscio and Wideman (Padres Mission's No. 4 prospect), got on base six times. McCoy, the No. 3 hitter and Padres Mission's No. 14 prospect, capitalized on the runners on base. McCoy's Midwest League-leading 23rd double plated DeCriscio in the first inning and followed Zach Evans' RBI single in the second with a two-run single to make it 4-0. After a Parra wild pitch sent in a run in the bottom of the fourth, singled home Kavares Tears to put the lead at 5-1. The Whitecaps scored again in the sixth, but Cantwell countered with his third homer with the TinCaps and fifth of the season. FW_0710.mp4 Player AB R H RBI BB K Justin DeCriscio 5 1 3 0 0 2 Ryan Wideman 5 0 3 0 0 0 Alex McCoy 5 0 2 3 0 0 Kavares Tears 5 1 1 0 0 2 Rosman Verdugo 5 0 1 0 0 2 Luke Cantwell 2 2 2 1 3 0 Kasen Wells 0 0 0 0 0 0 Jack Costello 0 0 0 0 0 0 Kerrington Cross 4 1 2 0 1 1 Carlos Rodriguez 3 1 1 1 1 2 Zach Evans 4 0 1 1 0 1 Player IP H R ER BB K HR Abraham Parra 5 5 1 1 2 2 0 Igor Gil 2 2/3 2 2 1 2 3 0 Clark Candiotti 1 1/3 1 0 0 0 1 0 Kruz Schoolcraft Stellar, But Storm Can't Hold Lead Just a few days shy of the one-year anniversary of when he was drafted, left-handed starter Kruz Schoolcraft turned in one of the better starts of his first full season, but the Low-A Lake Elsinore Storm watched a 4-1 lead disappear in a 5-4 walk-off loss to the host Rancho Cucamonga Quakes. The Quakes won in the bottom of the ninth on a two-run bloop single with none out. Schoolcraft, Padres Mission's No. 5 prospect, went a season-high 5⅓ innings, allowing just one run on five hits, walking a pair and striking out three. Schoolcraft has gone at least five innings in five of his last six starts. Bradley Frye had two hits and George Bilecki drove in a pair of runs for the Storm. Bilecki's RBIs came on a fourth-inning double that put the Storm up 2-1. Frye singled home a run in the fifth and Jose Verdugo added a sacrifice fly in the fifth, giving the Storm a 4-1 lead. But the Quakes scored once in the seventh and once in the eight before walking it off in the ninth. Right-hander Rordy Mejia allowed one unearned run in 1⅔ innings, right-hander Yoesmerli Beltre one run in one inning and right-hander Carson Swilling two runs without retiring any of the four batters he faced. Swilling walked the leadoff hitter, an error on a bunt put two runners on, a hit by pitch loaded the bases before the winning single. LE_0710.mp4 Player AB R H RBI BB K Yimy Tovar 4 0 1 0 1 2 Jorge Quintana 4 1 1 0 1 2 Bradley Frye 5 1 2 0 0 3 Yoiber Ocopio 3 1 0 0 1 2 Dawson Willis 1 0 0 0 0 1 George Bilecki 3 1 1 2 1 1 Jose Verdugo 3 0 1 1 0 0 Truitt Madonna 3 0 0 0 1 2 Dylan Grego 4 0 0 0 0 2 Qrey Lott 3 0 0 0 0 0 Player IP H R ER BB K HR Kruz Schoolcraft 5 1/3 5 1 1 2 3 0 Rordy Mejia 1 2/3 2 1 0 1 1 0 Yoesmerli Beltre 1 2 1 1 0 3 0 Carson Swilling 0 1 2 1 1 0 0 Padres Mission's Top 20 Prospect Performance Ethan Salas: 3-for-4, 2B Kash Mayfield: DNP Miguel Mendez: DNP Ryan Wideman: 3-for-5 Kruz Schoolcraft: 5⅓ IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3 K Jorge Quintana: 1-for-4, 2 K Ty Harvey: On injured list Kale Fountain: Injured, out for season Braedon Karpathios: DNP Jagger Haynes: DNP Lamar King Jr.: DNP Tucker Musgrove: DNP Truitt Madonna: 0-for-3, 2 K Alex McCoy: 2-for-5, 2B, 3 RBI Jesus Castro: DNP Rosman Verdugo: 1-for-5, 2 K Garrett Hawkins: DNP Eric Yost: 5 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 4 BB, 7 K Michael Salina: DNP Winyer Chourio: DNP View full article

The weekend has arrived where the San Diego Padres will begin to add new faces to the organization through the amateur draft. In the last two years, the Padres added high school left-handers Kash Mayfield (2024) and Kruz Schoolcraft (2025). They currently rank as the No. 2 and No. 5 prospects on Padres Mission's Top 20 list. The Friars have drafted a high school player with each of their last nine first-round picks under A.J. Preller, the Padres' president of baseball operations and general manager. The draft begins with the first four rounds Saturday, then finishing Sunday with Rounds 5 through 20. TV coverage begins at 10 a.m. PT on NBC and Peacock, with it switching to MLB.com, MLB Network, MLB.tv and MLB+ at 11:30 a.m. Sunday’s telecast begins at 8:30 a.m. PT on MLB.com, MLB.tv and MLB+. This year, the Padres have the 21st selection of the first round. That will be one of five picks the Friars make on the first day. In addition to one pick in each round, they also have a compensation selection for making a qualifying offer to right-hander Dylan Cease, who ended up signing with the Toronto Blue Jays. Because of the size of the contract (seven years, $210 million) and with the Padres being a competitive-balance tax payor, they received an extra fourth-round pick (No. 134). That also gives the Padres extra money to work with in their draft pool. The Padres’ pool this year is $9,479,000. While there are slot values assigned to each pick in the first 10 rounds, teams can sign players for any amount as long as it fits into their pool. Deals are often made with certain players in order to redistribute money to another player. Teams can spend up to 5% more than their draft pool without incurring a penalty. No team has ever spent more than 5% in the 14 years this rule has been in place. Last year, 20 of 30 teams surpassed their bonus pool. Here are the slot values for each of the Padres’ picks: First round (21st pick): $4,224,700 Second round (60th): $1,561,000 Third round (97th): $808,100 Fourth round (124th): $620,300 Fourth round (comp, 134th): $563,900 Fifth round (157th): $449,500 Sixth round (186th): $350,100 Seventh round (215th): $276,400 Eighth round (245th): $226,300 Ninth round (275th): $205,000 10th round (305th): $193,700 Players drafted in the 11th through 20th rounds do not technically have a slot value, although they are soft-capped at $150,000 without counting toward the bonus pool. Any amount above $150,000 will go against the cap. That amount also applies to undrafted free agents. Draft picks have until July 27 at 2 p.m. PT to sign. Who should the Padres take with their top pick? Do they stick with a high school player or change it up with a college star? View full article

Editor's note: Padres Mission spoke with two industry experts about the state of the San Diego Padres' minor-league system, what they have done right, what they have done wrong and how they got to this state. This is the second of four articles on the subject. Part 1: Trades Have Depleted Majority of San Diego's Prospect Capital When you are at the bottom of the ladder in anything, the instant reaction is you must be bad at what you are doing. That is easy to understand when you look at MLB standings and see that the worst teams aren’t doing multiple things well that season. For the most part, those tend to be temporary issues that get resolved over time. But when it comes to the San Diego Padres being at the bottom of prospect rankings, it gets more complicated. The Padres are, in general, pretty decent at acquiring talent—via the draft, international free agency, undrafted free agents, or even released players—to fill their farm system. “I actually think they drafted really well,” said Keith Law, senior baseball writer at The Athletic who tracks prospects. “They just keep trading the guys. You could argue that's fine, right? If you draft a player and you get somebody really good in return, somebody who can help your major-league club, then in some ways, that is a successful draft. You at least created enough value to, I don't know if justify the pick [is the right phrase], but to make that pick kind of worthwhile. The point of the draft is to—I don't like speaking about players as assets, they're actual people—but you are trying to create value for your organization. That can be from keeping the player, that can be from trading the player.” Neither Law nor Sam Dykstra, a senior reporter at MLB Pipeline, would put the Padres at the bottom of the barrel for systems they have seen in their careers. It is just that Preller has mostly emptied the tank of quality talent. “I think most orgs have gotten smarter and I think the Padres are relatively a smart organization too,” Dykstra said. “They just get really aggressive with their trades. I think developmentally they're pretty good, they're probably middle of the pack in terms of ability to develop really good players, like they do get credit, I think at least three-quarters of the credit, for developing Leo De Vries into the No. 2 overall prospect in the baseball that he is right now and Ethan Salas certainly getting back on track. They always believed in him, they deserve credit for that.” Development is a key part to productive systems. Teams at the top of the rankings work with their prospects from rookie-level all the way up to Triple-A at becoming better players after amateur careers where winning was a bigger priority over improving skill sets. Part of that is not spinning off prospects a year or two after they were drafted or signed. “Typically, their development tracks have been, they get a guy in the system who's just like preternaturally talented and he flies through the system, the Jackson Merrills, the Fernando Tatises. A lot of the other guys, they just developed them a little bit, but they're still pretty famous from the draft or when they got signed internationally and they cash in on that,” Law said. “I do think for them to improve this going forward, obviously the most important thing is keep your prospects, but they're going to have to do a lot of the hard work on developing guys over four- or five-year periods. “If you draft and scout the way that the Padres do, where you're mostly taking high school guys up top, you have to be patient. (2025 first-rounder Kruz) Schoolcraft, they knew when they took him he wasn't going to be ready in two years, or at least they should have known when they took him, right? He could still be really good, but it's going to take some time and that's just generally not in their M.O. under Preller. So, I do think that that is a shift in philosophy from how they've operated for the last decade or so.” To Law’s point, the 19-year-old Schoolcraft, Padres Mission’s No. 5 prospect, has made 14 starts and pitched 49⅓ innings, with a 14.8% walk rate and 23.5% strikeout rate in his first full pro season since being taken with the 25th pick in last year’s draft out of Sunset High School in Portland, Ore. The previous year, left-handed starter Kash Mayfield was also taken with the 25th pick, this time out of Elk City (Okla.) High School and is now Padres Mission's No. 2 prospect. Of the 11 drafts under Preller, who took over the Padres in August 2014, nine of the 10 first-round selections were high school players. The lone exception was Stanford right-hander Cal Quantrill in 2016. (The Padres did not have a first-round pick in 2015.) Of those 10 first-rounders—all of whom did play in the majors, except for the last four who are still in the minors—only four made their MLB debut with the Padres: left-hander MacKenzie Gore (2017 draft), right-hander Ryan Weathers (2018), shortstop CJ Abrams (2019) and Merrill (2021). Right-hander Dylan Lesko (2022) and outfielder Dillon Head (2023) have not progressed beyond High-A after being traded. The Padres have the 21st pick in this year’s MLB Draft, which begins Saturday. “I think their strategy, in terms of the draft, is it becomes a running joke every year: Is there a big left-hander that they can go draft out of high school?” Dykstra said. “I think part of that is they are, because of their major-league success, always drafting in the back half of the first round, so you're not going to get access to the Roch Cholowskys and Vahn Lackeys of the world. Where do we see value that other teams don't and what do we think we can develop really well? I think you know they've kind of tapped into that. I know Kruz Schoolcraft has not had a great start to the year, but they always knew he was a long-term project. I think you're seeing some nice flashes from Kash Mayfield this year, in terms of him becoming maybe like a top-20 left-handed pitching prospect in baseball.” Another spot where the Padres have had success is finding some hidden gems after the draft. Braedon Karpathios went undrafted out of Lampeter (Pa.) High School in 2021 and then a year at Harford Community College, where he was a pitcher and an outfielder. The Friars signed him after the 2022 draft, kept him in the outfield, and he has risen up to Double-A San Antonio this season and is Padres Mission’s No. 9 prospect. Outfielder Alex McCoy is another example from last year’s draft. He wasn’t selected after his senior year at Hofstra, but then connected with the Padres and is having a really nice first full season in pro ball with the High-A Fort Wayne TinCaps after debuting with the Low-A Lake Elsinore Storm. McCoy is Padres Mission’s No. 14 prospect. Both came out of Maryland (Karpathios a juco and McCoy in high school), the same as Merrill when the Padres took him 27th overall in 2021 out of high school. “Their scouting group is really good ... they do a really good job at finding those small corners that may be getting overlooked by some of the other orgs or just baseball in general, and finding the talent and developing them, leaning into those guys' strengths,” Dykstra said. “You know, it's a very different story. Jackson Merrill being a prominent pick and Karpathios and McCoy being undrafted free agents, but that's how you build quality organizations, is doing it from top to bottom. I think they do a good job of scouting the country, finding the right fits for them and then developing them. It's just sometimes they're shipping them out the door pretty quickly.” International free agency is another way to build a system. The Friars struck gold with Salas in 2023 and then again with De Vries in 2024 when both were the top name each of those years, but that didn’t translate into success the next two, when they didn’t land a top-10 prospect. While rankings for the 2027 class have not come out, the Padres have already landed a commitment from 16-year-old Yoel King, a 6-foot-5, 240-pound right-hander who is already throwing 100 mph. “They're always in on the right guys in international free agency,” Law said. “I think they've been outbid a few times recently, post-Salas they haven't had a huge success there more recently. I also know that the international process, I think it's a big joke, agreeing to terms with players at age 13 or age 12. There's a whole lot more than just talent identification, whereas instead, in the draft, even if they aren't necessarily taking players I love, specifically the Padres, I can often understand it and I can see it. Like, I didn't like that guy, but they're going for upside. OK. I would not take a high school pitcher in the first round pretty much ever. But if I were going to do it, I'd probably do it a lot like the Padres do. They pick the right types of guys.” Every Padres fan knows the franchise has only been to two World Series, 1984 and 1998, losing both times in unflattering fashion. Getting back to the Fall Classic drives every front office to do whatever it can to provide the team the best chance to hoist the Commissioner’s Trophy in late October. Emptying out the farm system without any real postseason success has to sting for Preller. But the Padres have been in the thick of things in recent seasons. After finishing fourth or fifth in the NL West in Preller’s first five seasons, they have been in contention in five of the last six seasons entering 2026. While there hasn’t been a division title as the Los Angeles Dodgers have dominated that category, the Friars have made four postseason appearances since ending a 13-year drought in the shortened 2020 season. Of those four tries, there was only one trip to the NL Championship Series, in 2022 when the Friars fell to the Philadelphia Phillies in five games. They came close to another in 2024, when the Padres had a 2-1 lead in the best-of-five NL Division over the Dodgers, who won the final two games of the series and went on to win the World Series. “I think their aggression, if it had won them a title, I would never speak it over again,” Dykstra said. “They would just be like, 'Hey, flags fly forever. That works.’ It hasn't resulted in what they were always aiming for and now they're kind of having to pay the piper for those decisions.” View full article