SAN DIEGO – The San Diego Padres selected right-handed pitcher Dylan Lesko from Buford High School (Ga.) with the 15th overall pick in MLB’s 2022 First-Year Player Draft, President of Baseball Operations & General Manager A.J. Preller and Vice President of Amateur and International Scouting Chris Kemp announced today.
Recommended by Padres Area Scout Tyler Stubblefield, Lesko, 18, became the first junior ever to win Gatorade’s National Baseball Player of the Year Award in 2021 after going 11-0 with a 0.35 ERA and 112 strikeouts in 60 innings pitched. In 2021, the 6-foot-3, 200-pound right-hander led Buford High to a 32-2 record and a berth in the second round of the Class 6A playoffs. The nation’s No. 2 prospect in the Class of 2022 as ranked by Perfect Game and PrepBaseballReport, he held opposing hitters to a .126 batting average and a 0.68 WHIP while contributing offensively by posting a .417 batting average, 25 RBI and an OPS of 1.054. A Vanderbilt University commit, he maintained a 4.0 GPA throughout his high school curriculum.
San Diego also holds the 39th overall selection tonight in Competitive Balance Round A and the 53rd overall pick in the 2nd round. The MLB draft will continue tomorrow at 11:00 a.m. PT with rounds 3-10, and will conclude on Tuesday, July 19th with rounds 11-20.
