His farm system stocked with some of the top pitching prospects in the game, Padres General Manager A.J. Preller used his first-round pick on a high school bat for the second year in a row.
The Padres drafted Tennessee high school outfielder Robert Hassell III with the eighth overall pick Wednesday afternoon.
Hassell, a two-time Tennessee Gatorade Player of the Year, was the first high school prospect off the board.
Hassell hit .423 with 14 homers as a junior at Independence High School, which played just two games this year before the COVID-19 pandemic wiped out his senior season.