Blue Jays Nation’s Top 25 Canadian Baseball Prospects for 2026: #7 Garrett Hawkins
It’s not often that you see a Major League Baseball team pick a player out of a Canadian college, but that’s exactly what the San Diego Padres did with Garrett Hawkins.
# 7 – Garrett Hawkins
Hometown: Biggar, Saskatchewan
Organization: San Diego Padres
Drafted: 9th round (SDP)
Position: Right-handed relief pitcher
Bats/Throws: Right/Right
Hawkins was born and raised in Biggar, Saskatchewan, a town that sits about an hour outside of Saskatoon and is known for its slogan “New York is big, but this is Biggar”. Hawkins played his high school years with Vauxhall Academy, before attending the University of British Columbia, one of just four Canadian schools in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics.
He spent two seasons there, posting a 3.62 ERA in 77 innings pitched during the 2019 season and a 3.66 ERA in 32 innings pitched during the 2020 season before playing his draft year in 2021 with the Trenton Thunder of the MLB Draft League. The Padres came calling in the ninth round of the 2021 draft, signing the right-handed pitcher to a signing bonus of $75,000.
Hawkins finished his 2021 season with the Arizona Complex League team, posting a 2.35 ERA and 2.39 FIP in 15.1 innings pitched. He was stretched out as a starter the following season, making 17 starts in Single-A and and four in High-A, where he had a 4.74 ERA and 4.52 FIP in 93 innings pitched.
The former Thunderbird made just four starts in 2023, before requiring Tommy John surgery to end his season. Hawkins also missed all of the 2024 season in his recovery, but returned for the 2025 season.
2025 season
Hawkins returned for the 2025 season and moved into a full-time relief role. Beginning the season with the Padres’ High-A team, the 6’5”, 230 lbs righty posted a 1.43 ERA and 2 FIP in 44 innings pitched, with a 37 K% and 8 BB%.
In early August, Hawkins earned a callup to the Padres’ Double-A team, where the 26-year-old had a 1.69 ERA and 2.83 FIP in 16 innings pitched, along with a 30.3 K% and 15.2 BB%. All told, Hawkins finished with a 1.50 ERA and 2.22 FIP in 60 innings pitched, with a 35.1 K% and 10.1 BB%, while giving up just one home run all season.
Looking ahead to 2026
Hawkins was Rule 5 eligible at the end of the season, but the Padres made the right decision to add the 26-year-old to their 40-man roster to protect him. That also means that they can call him up at any point next season without needing to designate someone for assignment.
The right-handed pitcher will begin his 2026 season somewhere in the upper minors, but which level depends on how he performs during Spring Training. If he has a good Spring Training, it’s easy to see the Padres to start him at the Triple-A level, but with only 16 innings pitched in Double-A, it’s equally possible he begins the season repeating the level.
Either way, he’ll have to keep on doing what he’s doing while improving his walk rate, as his 15.2 BB% in 16 innings pitched in Double-A last season was a bit concerning.
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