MLB Draft 2016: Padres select high school P Mason Thompson with 85th overall pick

The Padres kick off day two in a similar way that they started day one: drafting a pitcher recovering from Tommy John surgery. This time it is a high school pitcher, out of Round Rock HS (Texas), named Mason Thompson. Listening to the draft broadcast they compared also compared his situation to Padres 1st round pick Cal Quantrill due to his injury history and not pitching much in 2016. Jim Callis also noted that he would have been an “easy 1st round pick” if he was healthy.

Here’s what MLB.com also said about him:

Thompson starred for the U.S. national 15-and-under team as a rising sophomore in August 2013, dominating Cuba to win the gold-medal game at the Pan American championships. He already threw in the low 90s and looked like a potential first-round pick for 2016. But he injured his elbow and had Tommy John surgery as a junior and pitched just one inning this spring, clouding his status. Thompson did hold bullpen workouts for scouts, during which he looked as athletic and projectable as ever. He generates easy velocity, reaching 94 mph with some armside run and the promise of added heat once he fills out his lanky 6-foot-7 frame. He'll need time to develop his secondary pitches but shows the potential for at least a solid curveball and an average changeup. Thompson's athleticism should allow him to throw strikes and his arm works well, giving hope that he'll stay healthy going forward. It remains unclear whether he has shown enough for a team to sign him away from his commitment to Texas.

That last sentence is key here. The Padres plan for the day was to find guys that they can give overslot money too in order to sway them from going to college. Hopefully, they already have a good feel for what kind of dollars it will take to sign this young right hander.