San Diego Padres Draft: Sam Weatherly intriguing starter and interview

Clemson’s Sam Weatherly presents an intriguing option for the San Diego Padres in the draft. We also recently had the chance to catch up with him.

Named “Mr. Baseball” in the state of Michigan in June 2017, Sam Weatherly drew plenty of attention from professional talent. While the San Diego Padres passed on selecting him at the time, they may have another shot at doing so in June’s draft. Nearly three years have passed since Weatherly was taken by the Blue Jays in the 27th round, but he chose to play collegiate baseball at Clemson.

As a freshman, Weatherly posted a 6.64 ERA in eight appearances – including five starts – while striking out 17 batters in 20.1 innings. He also walked 17 batters over that timeframe and wisely participated in the Northwoods League the following summer. Gradually progressing towards the Clemson starting rotation, he earned that opportunity this year.

Before the shutdown, Weatherly made four starts and displayed a tremendous improvement in his command. He posted a 0.79 ERA in 22.2 innings while striking out 43 batters and walking just 14. Not only had his command improved, but so did his ability to create whiffs, allowing a .096 average and 2.8 hits-per-nine (H/9) innings, which ranked seventh in the country.

His best start in the shortened season came against Stony Brook, where he struck out 14 over six innings and allowed just two hits and one walk.

At 6-foot-4, 205 pounds, Weatherly has the frame of a future starting pitcher in a big-league rotation and should only add velocity as he physically matures. He displays a three-pitch arsenal with a 96 MPH fastball, an above-average slider, and a changeup that remains a work in progress.

He’s been rising up draft boards and figures to be taken in the third round of June’s draft. Baseball America recently pegged him as the 86th best prospect in this class, which would align well with the Padres holding the 81st overall pick.

Assuming his command continues to progress, Weatherly profiles closest to Blake Snell.

Snell 2019: 6-foot-4, 215 lbs, 4.29 ERA, 8.1 H/9, 1.2 HR/9, 3.4 BB/9, 12.4 K/9

Weatherly Clemson career: 6-foot-4, 205 lbs, 3.48 ERA, 6.0 H/9, 0.2 HR/9, 7.6 BB/9, 13.2 K/9

Q: Drafted by the Blue Jays in the 27th round of the 2017 MLB Draft, can you talk about what the draft process was like for you the first time around and if there was the temptation to forego collegiate baseball at the time? Were the Blue Jays showing the most interest in you leading up to the draft?

A: I really enjoyed the entire draft process. I loved hearing about what all these organizations had to offer and what they were about. I think anytime you put the potential opportunity to play professional baseball in any player’s face; it would be very tempting. Every ballplayer wants to play pro ball and, eventually, the big leagues, so getting the chance to pursue that dream right after high school was very intriguing.

I ended up making the decision to go to school, and looking back now it really was the right choice, I love being at Clemson. The Blue Jays did seem to show more interest out of high school, and I had a very good relationship with Coulson Barbiche, the area scout of the Blue Jays, which I believe helped a lot too.

Q: You played in two wood-bat leagues, the Northwoods League in summer 2018 and Cape Cod League during summer 2019. What goals did you set out for yourself each time, and, if anything, what were you trying to fix mechanically?

A: I just wanted to improve during the summer leagues. I think summer ball is a great opportunity to improve on stuff that you really couldn’t work on during the school year, and for me, it was constantly working on a consistent delivery and improving a certain pitch.

Q: As a bullpen guy in your freshman and sophomore years, you made four starts before the shutdown while posting a 0.79 ERA in 22.2 innings. What can you attribute to the success you experienced in a limited sample size this year, and do you see yourself as a starter at the next level?

A: A lot of the credit goes to our sports psychologist at Clemson, Cory Schafer, and my pitching Coach, Andrew See. With them and some ideas from other players that I played with during the summer, we developed a plan during the fall about making improvements. I wanted to start, and Coach See was willing to give me an opportunity if I could make improvements in the strike zone.

We went with a different throwing program because before I was a big long toss guy and I still like to occasionally, but we thought it might have been throwing me out of wack. We shortened my throwing distances and implemented an overweight/oversize – underweight/undersized ball throwing program. This allowed me to gain some feel with different balls, and when I got the regular baseball in my hand, it helped a ton.

Our sports psych, Cory Schafer, was also monumental in the changes that I made mentally. We worked every week together about developing a routine, relaxing, composure, breathing, journaling, and the list goes on. I was able to find a middle ground between being a very “amped up” competitive guy and totally relaxed, controlled violence.

With all of this help from both of them, along with other teammates, I made significant improvements and won a starting job. I absolutely see myself as a starter in the future. I know that I can continue to develop more pitches and improve in the zone.