SAN DIEGO -- Former major league infielder Harold Reynolds, working the amateur draft for the MLB Network called the Padres "one of the most boring teams in baseball." A plodding, station-to-station club, the Padres have very few elite athletes on their big-league roster or in their minor-league system.
On Tuesday, in a departure from their college-first, play-it-safe philosophy, the Padres took a chance and selected outfielder Donavan Tate with the third overall pick.
They followed by tapping another athletic outfielder -- Everett Williams from McCallum High in Texas -- in the second round.
"This was a good day," said Grady Fuson, the Padres' vice president of scouting and player development. "Obviously, we got two very athletic and offensive-minded outfielders.
"Tate has huge raw power. He has great projectable power. He has great lift and loft to the pull field.
"A worse case is that he's a Mike Cameron type, a great defender with power who strikes out a lot. The best case is that he's Andruw Jones as his best."
Tate, a two-sport star at Cartersville High in northwest Georgia, has 4.4 speed in the 40-yard dash, throws a fastball clocked at 93-94 mph and can toss a football 70 yards. A right-handed hitter, he batted .525 with 10 homers this season.
The son of former NFL running back Lars Tate, the 6-foot-3, 205-pound Donavan Tate has signed a letter of intent to play football at the University of North Carolina.
"He is blessed with good genes, good work ethic and a good attitude," Cartersville baseball coach Stuart Chester said.
"He has natural, God-given talent," Cartersville football coach Frank Barden said. "He's very strong, very gifted and very fast."
It will cost the Padres to sign Tate. The third pick in last year's draft -- high school first baseman Eric Hosmer by the Kansas City Royals -- received $6 million. Tate will command at least that.
"There is a risk involved," Fuson said. "But this one of those rare times that you have a player at the top of your list, and you're in a position to take him. It doesn't matter if you have Alex Rodriguez No. 1 if you're not in a position to take him.
"We know he played football, but we've done a lot of work. We believe he wants to be a baseball player."
Tate said he doesn't have a preferred sport between football and baseball.
"My favorite is kind of whatever season it is," Tate said. "This is exciting, a little overwhelming. To be selected this high is an honor.
"I heard Harold Reynolds say the Padres needed athletes. My name was at the top of their list, and I'm honored they considered me one of the top athletes in the country."
Williams, a 5-10, 205-pound left-handed hitter, hit .462 with six homers and 34 RBIs this season. He also stole 27 bases.
Padres scouting director Bill "Chief" Gayton said Williams was high on the team's board.
"We were hoping he'd get to us," Gayton said. "He's a bulldog type with a nice, balanced swing. He has baseball tools. He's a plus defender, has a plus arm, plus speed and has plus raw power."
In the third round, the Padres picked right-hander Jerry Sullivan from Oral Roberts. Sullivan was 8-3 with a 3.12 ERA this season.
Fuson said Sullivan's fastball has been timed at 90-93 mph and is complemented by a good slider and changeup.
Padres general manager Kevin Towers was pleased with the organization's first three picks, but was especially happy about Tate and Williams.
"We got two dynamic players," Towers said. "Both can be offensive producers.
"Tate is a mature kid. He doesn't have a projectable body; he has a great body. I wouldn't be surprised if he moves quickly.
"I hope he's roaming center field in the next few years."
Contact staff writer John Maffei at 760-740-3547.
