Bold claim: a Canadian reliever’s historic minor-league season could finally push him onto a big-league roster. That’s the story of Garrett Hawkins, a Saskatoon-born pitcher who arrived at San Diego Padres spring camp with real optimism about earning a spot on the 26-man roster after a season for the ages in the minors in 2025.
Hawkins shined across 45 appearances split between High-A Fort Wayne and Double-A San Antonio, posting a sterling 1.50 ERA. His standout stretch included a 38-inning scoreless run that unfolded over 29 outings, during which he allowed only 19 baserunners and piled up 51 strikeouts. The Padres capped his breakout by naming him their Pitcher of the Year.
“I had days when it felt like I didn’t have it, and I’d tell myself we’d just grind it out and see what happened,” Hawkins recalled, per MLB.com’s Jesse Borek. “I managed to get into a rhythm, and the big key was not overthinking it.”
What stands between Hawkins and a big-league debut are the pitchers ahead of him on the depth chart, including flame-throwing Mason Miller and a trio of high-end relievers in Jason Adam, Adrian Morejón, and Jeremiah Estrada. As Padres manager Craig Stammen put it, Hawkins already brings a proven toolkit; now he must prove it against major-league hitters in real-game environments.
At 25 years old, Hawkins stands out as a rare Canadian draft-to-majors story. He was selected by the Padres in the ninth round of the 2021 MLB June Amateur Draft out of the University of British Columbia, coming from USports rather than a traditional U.S. college program. He also endured Tommy John surgery, missing the entire 2024 season, and shifted to the bullpen ahead of 2025, where he has boosted his fastball velocity into the mid-90s after previously sitting in the 90–92 mph range as a starter.
The journey now comes down to one final hurdle: earning a promotion to the major-league club and showcasing his evolved stuff against the game’s top hitters.
