Padres prospect Donavan Tate a no-show

Outfielder Donavan Tate, the Padres’ 2009 first-round pick taken third overall, did not show up at Minor League camp. Via the San Diego Union-Tribune:

Tate, the outfielder signed by the Padres for $6.5 million as the No. 3 overall pick of 2009, informed the club that he will not be reporting on time with the rest of the minor league position players on Friday. Tate’s reason for not showing in Peoria was described by the club as “personal.”

Tate hit just .226 overall between Single-A Fort Wayne and Lake Elsinore, stealing 21 bases but with a disappointing 60 percent success rate. His career has been besieged by injuries and suspensions -- most memorably, he was suspended in June 2011 for his second positive test for a drug of abuse (i.e. not performance-enhancers).

22 years old without even a taste of Double-A, and now a no-show at Padres camp, Tate’s career takes an even more disappointing turn. Padres VP Randy Smith suggested that Tate needs to work on being a better person before he can become a better ballplayer.

The two players taken ahead of Tate in the 2009 draft, Stephen Strasburg and Dustin Ackley, have enjoyed at least a modicum of success at the Major League level.