WINTER BALL FOR TATIS
GM Preller supports the idea, but Pham isn’t sure it’s wise
Padres shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. joined Estrellas for the Dominican winter league’s postseason.
Fernando Tatis Jr. is something of a made man.
He doesn’t have a longterm extension just yet with the Padres, but he’s got endorsement deals with Gatorade, BMW and Adidas, to name a few. He finished fourth in NL MVP voting as a 21-year-old shortstop. His historic numbers through the first 100 games of his career, combined with his natural f lair around the diamond, has Tatis positioned as the next face of baseball.
So how is he spending the offseason?
On Sunday Tatis joined Estrellas for the Dominican winter league’s postseason.
And Padres General Manager A.J. Preller wouldn’t think of standing in Tatis’ way.
“There’s a lot of trust with Fernando,” Preller said late Tuesday night. “… He’s a guy who loves baseball. He wants to continue to improve and he likes to play in his country, in his hometown. It’s refreshing. You don’t see it a lot. Historically there’ve been a ton of guys, established big leaguers, who’ve gone back and played winter ball to continue working on their game. It’s not done as much these days, but ultimately he loves the game of baseball and he wants to get better.
“He expressed that to us. Ultimately we’re supportive.”
Tatis finished his sophomore season with 17 homers, good for second in the NL. His 2.9 fWAR ranked third in the NL behind MVP
Freddie Freeman (3.4) and former AL MVP Mookie Betts (3.0). He also led the majors in average exit velocity (95.9 mph), hard-hit rate (62.2 percent) and balls hit 95-plus mph (102).
All this despite hitting .208/.311/.403 over the last month of the season, a drop-off that dragged his final line to .277/.366/.571 after a 1.055 OPS over his first 37 games to help position the Padres as an upstart contender in the NL West.
Tatis also hit .318/.444 / .682 over six postseason games, which included a momentous home run that helped bring the Padres back from the brink of elimination in Game 2 of the Wild-Card Series.
In other words, the Padres need Tatis on the field.
Which is why at least one teammate expressed mixed feelings about Tatis playing this winter. Tatis sat out last winter after missing roughly half his rookie season to hamstring and back injuries.
“He could probably be the face of the game if he continues to get better,” Padres outfielder Tommy Pham said Tuesday on SiriusXM’s MLB Network Radio. “As far as winter ball, man that’s tough. I enjoy playing winter ball too. I understand. I love the game. …
“I’m going to say a prayer tonight for his health. Just don’t get hur t. We need you.”
Preller understands that as much as anyone after building the Padres’ f irst postseason roster since 2006. His shortstop is a linchpin in parlaying the Padres’ 2020 success into sustained contention in the NL West, which he buoyed with a frenetic 48-hour window in which he added aces Blake Snell and Yu Darvish and Korean star Ha-Seong Kim.
None of that, Preller said, impacts the team’s desire to draw up a long-term extension with Tatis, perhaps before the start of spring training.
In fact, Preller ’s latest moves serve as a reminder of just how committed ownership is to winning in San Diego.
“He wants to be a part of an organization that can win championships,” Preller said. “He’s all about winning. … I think he continues to see how serious we are. Hopefully that lines up. We’ve said it all along. It’s a priority for us. We’ll continue talking and after the new year we’ll get into some more details and hopefully that’s something that if it lines up for both sides we get something done.”