Padres select Ryan Weathers with the 7th overall selection in the 2018 MLB draft

With the seventh overall selection, the Padres have chosen Ryan Weathers. He’s a lefty pitcher from Loretto High School in Tennessee. His father, David Weathers, played 19 years in the majors. He’s a big kid with a broad build, so there is some projection in his frame but at 6’2”, 210lbs he’s not likely to build as much as some prep draftees. He already has a fastball that runs into the mid-90’s, an above-average curveball, and a changeup that shows promise considering that he’s only 18. He’s known for his command and agressiveness. He has an advanced feel for pitching and understands how to sequence to attack hitters. John Sickels over at MinorLeagueBall said that he liked Weathers best of all the prep arms in the draft. As I noted when I selected Weathers in the SB Nation mock draft, Weathers is a Dodgers fan, but we can fix that. He might not have the eye-popping arsenal of MacKenzie Gore, but here’s a hint of what he brings to the #HotTalentLava pool:

The Padres were rumored to be targeting a prep pitcher, but most mock drafts had the team targeting Matt Liberatore. Weathers was projected to go as high as the 5-7 range, but some thought that he might drop to the later teens. As such, he will probably accept an under-slot bonus, meaning that the Padres are likely preparing for an aggressive move later in the draft... but it’ll take some cash to pull him away from his commitment to Vanderbilt. The value of the #7 pick is $5,526,500.

The team’s next selection will be 38th overall in the Competitive Balance Round A.