Sask. pitcher Hawkins knocking on door of MLB debut ahead of spring training

Coming off a physically and emotionally demanding comeback season south of the border, Garrett Hawkins was ready for a break from the ballpark this winter.

He took that break visiting his hometown of Biggar to reunite with supporters who have cheered him on from afar.

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“Down there you kind of lose sight of familiar faces,” Hawkins said. “Coming home, that’s definitely a big part of it. You get to see everybody again and feel more at home.”

The soon to be 26-year-old Hawkins is now back indoors throwing a baseball and preparing for the biggest month of his professional career so far.

Hawkins has been training with Going Yard Baseball Academy in Saskatoon over the last several months, getting his body ready to attend spring training with the San Diego Padres in Peoria, Ariz.

“Excited to get down there and get back at it,” Hawkins said.

“New opportunity this spring training being in big league camp, which I’m really excited about. Just trying to put all that work I did in the off-season to use.”

Hawkins is coming off a spectacular 2025 season in the Padres’ system playing for the Fort Wayne Tin Caps in High-A and the San Antonio Missions at the Double-A level.

Pitching 60 combined innings over 45 games of action, Hawkins was nearly unhittable, with a 1.50 earned run average while averaging 12 strikeouts per nine innings of work.

During that stint, Hawkins pitched 38 consecutive innings of scoreless baseball with Fort Wayne and San Antonio between Apr. 27 to Aug. 9, 2025 en route to being named San Diego’s minor league pitcher of the year.

In November, the Padres elevated Hawkins to their 40-man roster meaning he’ll be attending spring training with MLB stars and veterans who have racked up hundreds of major league games.

“They don’t want me to change much,” Hawkins said.

“It probably comes with lots of people as they move up, some guys try to be too much and don’t stick to what’s been working for them. I think that’s the biggest message, try not to do too much and what I’m doing is on the right track.”

It was a long road back to regaining confidence for Hawkins, who missed the entirety of the 2024 minor league season after undergoing Tommy John surgery to repair the elbow on his right arm.

In that time, he watched as fellow pitchers in the San Diego system were able to get in games and showcase their skills to Padres brass in the hopes of their own call-ups to the majors leagues.

“You’re friends with everybody and you obviously want everyone to do well,” Hawkins said.

“You’re also playing for yourself too. It’s a fine balance of controlling what you can control and things will play out as they will.”

Hawkins has thrown a handful of sessions out of the bullpen and is expecting to throw a few more before hopping on a plane to spring training.

“It’s nice to ramp up and get back into the game mentality a bit,” Hawkins said. “Throw off the mound, see where everything is at and just get the mind right to head down to spring training.”

Hawkins will now be pushing this year to become just the 10th player born and raised in Saskatchewan to make their major league debut.

With his stock rising and injury rehab now behind him, that confidence has returned in a big way which he is hoping to tap into at Padres spring training.

“I think that’s the biggest thing,” Hawkins said.

“Just knowing where the team values me and they want to keep me around, which is nice. Definitely a confidence boost and kind of just that next step closer to being called up.”

Hawkins will now head to Arizona, with pitchers and catchers set to report to spring training on Feb. 10.

Read more:

• Padres pitching prospect from Sask. returns to spring training after surgery
• New home plate seating coming to Saskatoon Berries games at Cairns Field
• A.J. Ouellette excited to be back with Riders for 2026