‘It’s more than about just him’
GM, mates come down hard on Padres star Tatis after positive drug test
WASHINGTON — The Padres’ master plan for assembling a superteam capable of challenging for a World Series title ran into a significant snag when star shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. was suspended for the rest of the season Friday because of a positive drug test.
Tatis, who hasn’t played at all in 2022 after having surgery in March to repair a fractured wrist, had just begun a minor-league rehab assignment and was on the verge of rejoining the Padres as soon as next week.
But the announcement from Major League Baseball that Tatis tested positive for the banned substance Clostebol abruptly closed the door on the 23-year-old being a part of any playoff push.
In response to his 80-game suspension that will extend into next season, Tatis issued a statement through the MLB Players Association apologizing to the Padres and their fans. He called the result ‘‘devastating’’ and said the positive test was the result of medication he took to treat ringworm.
‘‘That’s his story,’’ Padres general manager A.J. Preller told reporters Friday outside the visitors’ clubhouse at Nationals Park. ‘‘We were hoping that from the offseason to now that there would be some maturity. Obviously with the news today, it’s more of a pattern and something that we’ve got to dig a bit more into.’’
Tatis hasn’t played for the Padres this season after he broke his wrist in a motorcycle accident during the offseason.
‘‘I think what we need to get to is a point in time where we trust,’’ Preller said. ‘‘Over the course of the last six or seven months, I think that’s been something that we haven’t really been able to have.’’
Preller told players about the suspension, and manager Bob Melvin also addressed the team shortly before the game Friday against the Nationals.
‘‘This is a blow for us,’’ Melvin said. ‘‘We’ll have to move on. I’m glad we made the moves we did at the [trade] deadline. We feel like we have a really good team still, and sometimes you have to deal with some adversity as a team.’’
Players in the clubhouse echoed Melvin’s comments.
‘‘Very disappointed,’’ right-hander Mike Clevinger said. ‘‘That’s the second time we’ve been disappointed with him. You hope he grows up and learns from this and learns that it’s more than about just him right now.’’
‘‘He hasn’t been part of the team all year,’’ third baseman Manny Machado said. ‘‘We’ve gotten to this point so far without him. We were waiting for him to get back and hopefully for him to be a spark plug for the team.’’
The Padres (64-52 and in playoff position in the National League) eagerly were looking forward to Tatis, the NL home-run champion last season with 42, being fully healthy and joining trade-deadline acquisitions Juan Soto, Josh Bell and Josh Hader in their quest for the first World Series title in franchise history.
Instead, Tatis not only will miss the final 48 games of the regular season — and the playoffs, provided the Padres make them — this year, but his suspension will extend to the World Baseball Classic next spring and the first 32 games of the regular season in 2023.
‘‘We have the guys to get where we want to be,’’ Machado said. ‘‘Obviously, with the trade deadline, what we did there, we reinforced the team and made the team a lot better.
‘‘We still have the same goal, which is to try and make a World Series and bring a championship to San Diego. That’s what we’re going to try to do.’’