rico43
<B>Director of Minor League Reports</B>
I don't consider myself a bleeding heart and the statistics offer little support to my proposal, but I kinda wish the Braves would take a chance on former No. 3 overall pick and Padres' problem child Donovan Tate and bring him to camp as a minor league free agent.
Yes, he had drug problems. Yes, he tore his Achilles. Yes, he hit only .211 in 2015. But here is the argument: Tate showed enough as a Cartersville, Ga., prep player to acquire the largest signing bonus ever by the Padres ($6.25 million, thanks, Scott Boras). A series of wrong decisions kept his career at a standstill, but he clearly was not emotionally ready to become a pro player out of high school.
Now, he's 25 and just finished his first full season without an injury problem. He has had, since becoming a pro, a stress fracture in his pubic bone (ouch), a sports hernia, a shoulder injury, a knee injury, a wrist injury and he even missed a month with a intestinal problem. He missed most of 2013 and all of 2014 with his Achilles injury. All in the past, thank goodness for him.
He was considered the player with the highest upside of any player in the draft in 2009. The Padres called him "A freak." His father, of course, was UGa and NFL running back Lars Tate. He has not been a discipline problem of late, and he still wants to prove himself.
He may have been one of the best prep players Georgia has ever seen. And frankly, this would seem to be the perfect time to allow him to try to win a job in the organization. My gut tells me he has something left to offer. But then, I don't know nearly as much about baseball as some of you.
Yes, he had drug problems. Yes, he tore his Achilles. Yes, he hit only .211 in 2015. But here is the argument: Tate showed enough as a Cartersville, Ga., prep player to acquire the largest signing bonus ever by the Padres ($6.25 million, thanks, Scott Boras). A series of wrong decisions kept his career at a standstill, but he clearly was not emotionally ready to become a pro player out of high school.
Now, he's 25 and just finished his first full season without an injury problem. He has had, since becoming a pro, a stress fracture in his pubic bone (ouch), a sports hernia, a shoulder injury, a knee injury, a wrist injury and he even missed a month with a intestinal problem. He missed most of 2013 and all of 2014 with his Achilles injury. All in the past, thank goodness for him.
He was considered the player with the highest upside of any player in the draft in 2009. The Padres called him "A freak." His father, of course, was UGa and NFL running back Lars Tate. He has not been a discipline problem of late, and he still wants to prove himself.
He may have been one of the best prep players Georgia has ever seen. And frankly, this would seem to be the perfect time to allow him to try to win a job in the organization. My gut tells me he has something left to offer. But then, I don't know nearly as much about baseball as some of you.
