San Diego Padres: still kicking themselves over the 2009 draft

The San Diego Padres swung and missed several times in the 2009 draft, and they are still dealing with the consequences.

Every draft is essential for every team. Of the fifty rounds (moved to forty rounds starting with the 2012 draft) each team is looking to walk away with organizational depth, some prospects who they can develop and potentially trade for big-league talent, and a few players who will turn into stars. The 2009 draft didn’t go as planned for the San Diego Padres.

Failing to sign a top round pick is bad, though failing to develop a top round pick is worse. Teams who can’t sign a first-round selection are given a draft pick as compensation in the following year’s draft. Failing to develop means lost time and resources.

With the third pick of the first round, the Padres chose a high school outfielder with a college football scholarship to North Carolina. Donovan Tate was given a $6.7M signing bonus to spurn football, which he did, but struggled to gain a foothold in the Padres minor league system. He would spend five seasons not getting above Single-A before flaming out.

Of course, Mike Trout was selected twenty-two picks later and we are still crying over that spilled milk.