[Sundance]

With the 26th overall pick in the 2034 Draft, the San Diego Padres selected college pitcher Whit Jackson.

To say that the draft pool was shallow when it came time for us to pick would be an understatement. There wasn’t any real offensive talent worth drafting in the 1st round, and Jackson was by far the best pitcher on the board. Even so, he’s far from a sure thing. This kid has the potential to have some of the nastiest stuff in the league. He should get decent movement on his pitches, but what really concerns us is his control. He’s going to be a high risk, high reward reliever. When he’s on, he’ll be untouchable, but he can’t consistently throw strikes. He can bring the heat with a fastball in the high 90s, and he has a slider that could potentially be brutal. We’re conservatively high on this kid – his potential stuff is just too good to not be excited about, but we are certainly wary of his control issues.

2nd Round Pick: 1B Jim York
We wanted a position player in the second round, and York seemed to fit the bill. He’s a slightly below average to average offensive prospect, but he should be a somewhat well-rounded batter. He’s not starter material, but he should be able to fill in as a role player if needed. Over a full season, he’d probably hit .250 with 10-15 HR.

3rd Round Pick: SS Jeff Bartlett
He’s a below average offensive talent, but like York, he doesn’t have any huge glaring weakness at the plate. He’s got good speed and excellent instincts on the base paths. He’s a solid defender and can make most throws. He looks like a solid backup infielder.

4th Round Pick: SS Oscar McMahon
We almost drafted McMahon in the 3rd round, but we gambled that he’d still be around in the 4th, and that gamble paid off. He’s a line drive hitter that’s hard to strike out. We were higher on this kid than the experts. There’s nothing flashy about his game, but I think that he can produce. Unfortunately, we offered a contract just below his demand and he immediately broke off negotiations. So he’s off to college instead.

5th Round Pick: SP Chris Thompson
Not expecting much here, but he was by far the best pitching prospect still available. He lacks effective stuff even though he gets ok movement and has good control with his pitches. He throws a cutter in the low 90s, but it lacks the bite needed to truly be effective. He’s does have good off speed stuff however, but without a pitch than can consistently set it up, batters can just key in on those pitches.

#1 Overall Pick: SS Ron Franks (Toronto)