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Fernando Tatis Jr.

Padres Notes: Kim, Tatis, De Vries

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The Padres were dealt a scare yesterday when Ha-Seong Kim was forced out of their loss to the Rockies after jamming his throwing shoulder diving into first base. San Diego sent the shortstop for imaging today and came away encouraged by the initial results.

“(Early testing) seems to be mostly favorable, but there’s zero timeline to it,” manager Mike Shildt told reporters before tonight’s series opener with the Twins (via the MLB.com injury tracker). “We’re initially fairly pleased with what it looks like. We’re still gathering information.” The Friars did not place Kim on the injured list, though he’s not available for tonight’s game.

Tyler Wade drew into the lineup at shortstop tonight. He’d seemingly be the favorite for playing time if Kim requires an IL stint. Wade provides speed and defensive versatility but limited offensive upside. He entered tonight’s game with a .241/.318/.259 batting line in 134 trips to the plate. Wade only has two extra-base hits (both doubles) all season. Kim is not an impact hitter, yet he’s far more of a threat than Wade. The South Korea native has 11 homers with a roughly average .223/.330/.370 slash across 470 plate appearances.

Kim has avoided the injured list in each of his first four MLB seasons. That durability will be a major selling point for the 28-year-old when he hits free agency during the upcoming offseason. There’s technically an $8MM mutual option on his deal with San Diego, but Kim will surely decline his end in favor of a $2MM buyout and look for a longer-term deal.

If Kim does require his first MLB injured list stint, he’ll join Fernando Tatis Jr. as lineup fixtures on the shelf. Tatis has been down for nearly two months after sustaining a stress reaction in his right leg. Dennis Lin of the Athletic wrote this evening that club officials have suggested Tatis could be out into the middle of next month (though there’s still no official timetable). The injury halted an All-Star campaign. Tatis was one of the most productive outfielders in the National League during the first half of the season, drilling 14 homers with a .279/.354/.468 line in 80 games.

The Friars have relied on David Peralta as their right fielder since Tatis went down. The 37-year-old veteran has been a surprisingly strong offensive contributor, running a .269/.331/.438 slash in 175 trips to the plate. Peralta is coming off a well below-average season with the Dodgers and wasn’t hitting well in Triple-A early this year.

In a bit of minor league injury news, Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune writes that top prospect Leodalis De Vries suffered a right shoulder strain that seems likely to end his season. While it’s not believed to be a long-term issue, the Low-A season only runs into the second week of September. De Vries was widely perceived as the most talented prospect in the most recent international signing class. The Dominican Republic native has only elevated his stock in the past few months, reaching Low-A while playing the entire season at age 17. The switch-hitting shortstop has turned in a .237/.361/.441 mark with 11 homers against much older competition. The Padres reportedly made him (and top catching prospect Ethan Salas) more or less untouchable at the trade deadline.

Padres Select Tirso Ornelas

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The Padres have selected outfielder Tirso Ornelas to their 40-man roster, MLBTR has confirmed. The move was previously listed on the club’s transactions tracker at MLB.com. The Padres have had an open spot on their 40-man roster since Yu Darvish was placed on the restricted list earlier this month, so no corresponding move will be required at this time.

Ornelas, 24, was an international signing out of Mexico, with the Padres giving him a $1.5MM signing bonus back in 2016. He put up a strong showing in Rookie ball in 2017, hitting .276/.399/.408 and getting himself some attention from prospect evaluators.

Baseball America listed him as the #31 prospect in the club’s system going into 2018 and he was on that outlet’s top 30 list for three years after that. FanGraphs ranked him as the #116 prospect in all of baseball going into 2019, highlighting his natural abilities at the plate.

Ornelas had a dismal year in 2019, slashing .217/.303/.279 across Rookie ball and High-A. Going into 2020, Eric Longenhagen at FanGraphs mentioned some swing changes that had negative results, but he still gave Ornelas praise and ranked him 19th in the system.

More recently, Ornelas seems to have gotten things back on track. After the minors were canceled in 2020, Ornelas put up some passable numbers in 2021 and 2022. Last year, he had a great showing in Double-A, with 11 home runs in 72 games. He also walked at a 14.1% clip and was only struck out in 18.9% of his plate appearances. His .284/.381/.473 line at that level translated to a wRC+ of 126.

He also got into 55 Triple-A games last year with less success, as his .285/.358/.425 line at that level led to a 96 wRC+ in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. But he’s been far better at that level here in 2024, with 12 home runs through 74 contests, a 10.3% walk rate and 17.1% strikeout rate. His .316/.390/.515 batting line is 24% better than league average, per wRC+.

It hasn’t been a straight line but Ornelas has found a winding road to the majors since being signed by the Padres almost a decade ago. Just a few days back, Longenhagen and Travis Ice released their list of top Padres’ prospects for this year at FanGraphs with Ornelas in the #12 slot. The report suggests the Statcast data isn’t as impressive as the raw numbers with Ornelas, but still he’s still viewed as a viable big leaguer.

Ornelas has played a bit of center field and first base but has mostly been in the outfield corners in his career. The Padres have Fernando Tatis Jr. on the injured list due to a right femoral stress reaction. Per Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune on X, Tatis has begun playing catch and swinging a bat but he still has some hurdles to clear before he can rejoin the club.

Without Tatis, the Friars have a corner outfield mix consisting of Jurickson Profar, David Peralta and Bryce Johnson. Profar is having a stunning career year at the age of 31 and is firmly implanted in left field. Peralta was just below league average at the plate over the 2021-23 period and is hitting .250/.313/.330 in 2024 for a wRC+ of 90. Johnson has mostly been in a bench role, with just one start since July 2.

Perhaps Ornelas can carve out some playing time in there during the final few months of 2024 or in the long term. Peralta and Profar are both impending free agents, so there’s lots of room next to Tatis and Jackson Merrill in the future outfield plans.

Padres Notes: Arraez, Tatis, Musgrove

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The Padres completed their first half with a 6-3 loss to the Braves, and San Diego enters the All-Star break with a 50-49 record and a +12 run differential.  While the National League wild card race is still very crowded, the Padres are a game out of a playoff spot and still in good position to make a run in the second half, though they’ll need good health and continued production from their star players to make it happen.

With this in mind, Luis Arraez told reporters (including Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune) today that he won’t be playing in Tuesday’s All-Star Game.  Arraez was named to the NL’s bench squad and will still attend the festivities in Arlington since his parents and sister will be in attendance at the Midsummer Classic for the first time, but the infielder won’t be taking the field because “I need the rest” for his injured left thumb.

Arraez jammed his thumb while sliding into third base during the Padres’ 9-7 win over the Nationals on June 25, and has since been trying to play through some serious discomfort whenever he fields the ball or takes a swing.  Scans haven’t revealed any structural damage to the thumb, but Arraez recently told Acee and company that he has been wrapping the base of his thumb for every game.

“I don’t feel 100 percent.  But every time I touch the line, I want to give 100 percent to the manager and to my teammates,” Arraez said.

It is a testament to Arraez’s toughness and ability that he has still continued to hit even while playing through this pain, even if his power has been even more limited by his thumb injury.  Arraez is batting .309/.321/.346 over 56 plate appearances in the 13 games he has played since hurting his thumb, yet only two of his 17 hits have been for extra bases (both doubles).  Though Arraez is known for his contact hitting moreso than his power, that .346 slugging percentage is well below the .427 career mark he posted in his first five MLB seasons with the Twins and Marlins.

Fernando Tatis Jr. is also hoping to take a step towards getting back onto the field when he undergoes an MRI during the All-Star break.  Tatis was placed on the 10-day injured list on June 22 due to a right femoral stress reaction, and told The Athletic’s Dennis Lin and other reporters on Friday that he was no longer feeling any pain in his right leg.  This is good news considering the uncertain nature of the injury, though while Tatis said he will “definitely” play again in 2024, he didn’t have any other updates on when exactly he might be able to return.

The fact that the injury was potentially seen as season-ending is certainly a concern, and itself perhaps a sign that Tatis isn’t out of the woods of being on a path to full fitness.  The upcoming MRI will potentially shed some light on a recovery timetable, and for now, Tatis’ baseball-related activity has been limited to only dry swings.

Moving from lineup injuries to rotation injuries, Joe Musgrove is slated for a full bullpen session on Wednesday.  Musgrove is eligible to return from the 60-day IL when his minimum absence time is up in late July, but his return from bone spurs in his right elbow will surely be delayed into August since the righty is only just in the early stages of his throwing progression.  As per Acee, Musgrove will limit himself to throwing only fastballs in his first couple of bullpen sessions.

Between this IL stint and another visit to the 10-day IL due to triceps tendinitis at the beginning of the season, Musgrove has thrown only 49 1/3 innings in 2024, and struggled to a 5.66 ERA.  This marks the second straight injury-marred year for Musgrove, as a broken toe and shoulder inflammation limited him to 97 1/3 innings in 2023, though he was more effective when he did pitch, delivering a 3.05 ERA.

Padres Place Fernando Tatis Jr. On Injured List

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Monday marked a busy day on the transaction front for the Padres. San Diego placed star right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr. on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to June 22, with a right femoral stress reaction. The Friars also optioned outfielder José Azocar and right-hander Jhony Brito to Triple-A El Paso. Filling the three spots on the active roster: outfielder Bryce Johnson, infielder Eguy Rosario and right-hander Adam Mazur. Johnson was not on the 40-man roster, but the Friars have had a vacancy for weeks.

The Tatis injury is the biggest development. Manager Mike Shildt indicated that Tatis could play through the issue but that it wouldn’t fully heal without rest (X link via Annie Heilbrunn of the San Diego Union-Tribune). The team isn’t providing a specific return timetable, though they expect it to be longer than the minimal 10 days. It’s not out of the question that Tatis is sidelined through the All-Star Break.

Any absence is a major blow to the San Diego lineup. Tatis has been one of the top outfielders in the National League this year. He’s hitting .279/.354/.468 with 14 home runs across 345 plate appearances. Tatis has trimmed his strikeout rate to a career-low 20.6% clip while making hard contact on a massive 53.4% of batted balls. There’s no easy way to replace that kind of production.

It seems the Pads could roll with a David Peralta/Johnson platoon in right field for the time being. The lefty-swinging Peralta is only hitting .204/.306/.241 over 25 games since being called up last month. Johnson, a switch-hitter, has yet to play in the majors this season. San Diego signed the 28-year-old to a minor league deal in January. The former Giant has reached base at a massive .430 clip over 259 plate appearances with El Paso. Johnson is hitting .301 while drawing walks more than 15% of the time. He has also swiped 18 bases in 20 attempts. Johnson is in the lineup against Patrick Corbin this evening.

Mazur returns to the big leagues just three days after being optioned. (He didn’t need to wait the minimal 15 days because he is technically being recalled to replace the injured Tatis.) In actuality, he’s more directly a replacement for Yu Darvish. San Diego anticipated the right-hander returning from the injured list tomorrow. However, Heilbrunn tweets that Darvish is battling some inflammation in his throwing elbow. While Shildt downplayed the long-term concern, he won’t be ready for MLB action tomorrow.

Darvish has been out since May 30 with a strained left groin. The late revelation of a new elbow concern is suboptimal, though it doesn’t seem the Padres are especially alarmed at this point. The injury will force San Diego to turn back to the 23-year-old Mazur for his fifth big league start. The former second-round pick has allowed 14 runs over his first 17 1/3 innings. Mazur has walked more than 19% of batters faced, a bizarre issue for a pitcher who has shown pristine control in his minor league career.

Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune observed (on X) that Johnson was in the clubhouse prior to the team announcement.

Padres Notes: Campusano, Tatis, Profar

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The Padres placed catcher Luis Campusano on the 10-day injured list today with a thumb contusion, per a team announcement. Catcher Brett Sullivan was recalled to the big league roster in a corresponding move. Fortunately, Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune relays that the Padres don’t expect Campusano’s stay on the shelf to be a long one as it likely won’t require more than a minimum stay of ten days.

After a 2023 season where Campusano was limited to just 49 games by injuries but appeared to break out at the plate with a .319/.356/.491 slash line (good for a 134 wRC+), the former top prospect’s 2024 campaign has been somewhat disappointing. He’s appeared in 66 of the club’s games this year but has mustered only a .234/.282/.371 slash line, which even in the game’s current deflated offensive environment is good for a wRC+ of just 89. That’s hardly a terrible mark for a catcher, but it’s nonetheless a far cry from the offensive output San Diego was surely hoping for after Campusano flashed the ability to be a star-level bat behind the plate when healthy enough to take the field last year.

With the 25-year-old sidelined for the time being, veteran backup Kyle Higashioka figures to step in as the club’s regular behind the plate while Campusano heals up. That leaves backup duties to Sullivan, 30, who had a three-game stint with the Padres earlier this year after making his MLB debut with the club last season. In a 33-game cup of coffee with San Diego last year, Sullivan struggled to a .210/.244/.284 slash line in 86 trips to the plate and appeared to be below average defensively behind the plate both in terms of framing and controlling the running game, although he does have a reputation as a solid blocker.

While Campusano was the only player the Padres placed on the shelf today, he’s not the only member of their starting lineup nursing an noteworthy injury. As MLB.com’s AJ Cassavell explored last night, both Fernando Tatis Jr. and Jurickson Profar exited yesterday’s game against the Brewers due to injuries. Profar departed due to tendinitis in his left knee that he’s been dealing with throughout the season to this point, while Tatis left because of a left triceps contusion, though Cassavell notes that he also appeared to be favoring his right quad, which he notes the young star has been playing on despite an injury for weeks.

Both players were out of the lineup today, though Profar told reporters (including Cassavell) today that he would be available off the bench for today’s game against Milwaukee and that he’s been managing the injury successfully to the point where it isn’t getting worse. Manager Mike Shildt, for his part, indicated to reporters last night that the club wasn’t especially concerned about either Profar or Tatis and that both believed they could play through their current ailments.

It’s easy to see why the Padres wouldn’t want to lose either player to the injured list. In 80 games this season, Tatis has looked good with a .279/.354/.468 slash line (139 wRC+) with eight stolen bases, while Profar leads all NL hitters with a .415 on-base percentage and sports an even more impressive 162 wRC+ as the club’s everyday left fielder. With the duo standing out as perhaps the club’s two biggest run producers in a strong lineup that also features Manny Machado, Luis Arraez, and Jackson Merrill, it’s hard to measure how difficult things could get for the Padres if they were to lose Profar and Tatis for a significant period. After all, that strong offense has only translated to a 40-40 record to this point in the season that leaves them in the mix for an NL Wild Card spot among a group of eight teams that are within three games of .500.

Gold Glove Winners Announced

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Major League Baseball announced the Gold Glove winners tonight, as selected by a group of managers, coaches, and statistical analysis.  Twenty-five percent of the selection total was determined by SABR’s Defensive Index metrics, while the other 75 percent was determined by votes from all 30 managers and up to six coaches from each team.  Of the latter pool, managers and coaches were limited to voting on players in their own league, and they weren’t allowed to vote for any players on their own team.  The utility Gold Glove wasn’t determined with any votes, but rather via a defensive formula calculated by SABR and Rawlings.

The list of winners…

 

The New Fernando Tatis Jr.

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Just over a year ago, MLB announced that Padres superstar Fernando Tatis Jr. had been suspended for 80 games after testing positive for Clostebol, a banned performance-enhancing substance. The announcement came as Tatis was on the cusp of making his 2022 season debut after undergoing wrist surgery in March of that year due to a fractured wrist sustained during an offseason motorcycle accident.

The news shook the baseball world, as it was the first time a star player in his prime had been suspended for PED usage since Ryan Braun nearly a decade earlier. A whirlwind of controversy surrounded Tatis throughout the 2022 campaign and in the lead up to his return to the field back in April. Since then, however, Tatis has fallen into the background as discourse surrounding the Padres quickly began to focus on their disappointing season. Down years from Xander Bogaerts, Manny Machado, and Yu Darvish captured most of the focus around the baseball world, as well as the strong performances the club has received from Blake Snell, Juan Soto, and Ha-Seong Kim.

Though Tatis hasn’t been at the forefront of most fans’ minds this season, we’re getting a glimpse of what the now-24 year old looks like as a player in the wake of his lost season last year. While he hasn’t been the perennial-MVP candidate he looked to be in his first three seasons as a big leaguer, Tatis has put together a radically different profile this year that nonetheless should keep him in the conversation as one of the best everyday regulars in the sport.

From his debut in 2019 until the 2021 campaign that saw him appear in his first career All Star game and finish third in NL MVP voting, Tatis was the prototypical young superstar. A shortstop with speed and power, Tatis featured the best ISO, the second best wRC+, and the third best fWAR total among MLB regulars during his first three seasons as a big leaguer. Meanwhile, Statcast indicates the youngster boasted sprint speeds and barrel rates in the 95th percentile or better in each of those seasons, clearly indicating he was elite in both respects. On the other side of things, Tatis had a significant problem with strikeouts. His 27.6% strikeout rate in the first three seasons of his career was the 19th-highest among MLB regulars, higher than the likes of Kyle Schwarber and Jorge Soler.

Flash forward to 2023, and almost all of these things have changed. Most obviously, Tatis is no longer a shortstop; both Bogaerts and Kim have supplanted San Diego’s $340MM man on the infield depth chart, prompting Tatis to move into a regular role in the outfield. He’s played right field almost exclusively this year, with four games in center and a one-inning cameo at second base representing his only appearances elsewhere on the diamond. While Tatis’s glove may have slid down the defensive hierarchy in 2023, his value on defense has soared. Tatis was worth -10 Outs Above Average and -9 Defensive Runs Saved as a shortstop in his first three seasons in the majors, leaving him well below average at the position.

By contrast, Tatis’s aforementioned move to the outfield has seen him not only provide positive value with his glove, but become one of the best defensive players in the sport this year. Tatis ranks in the 96th percentile with a +12 OAA in 2023, a figure bested by zero outfielders and only eight players at any position this season. Meanwhile, his +23 DRS makes him the second most valuable fielder in all of baseball this year by that metric, outclassed by only Daulton Varsho’s +26 figure.

While Tatis’s defense has shown this season, his offense has taken a considerable hit. Overall on the season, he’s slashed just .257/.321/.455 in 558 trips to the plate. While that’s still good for a well above average wRC+ of 115, it pales in comparison to the 154 figure he entered the 2023 campaign with for his career. That drop in offensive production comes almost exclusively from a relative power outage. Tatis has hit just 23 homers this season, a far cry from his 2021 season where he slammed 42 dingers in less trips to the plate than he’s taken this year. His once-lofty ISO that was second to only Shohei Ohtani in 2021 has dropped to just .198 this year. That figure is barely enough to crack the top 50, putting him alongside the likes of Justin Turner and Willson Contreras rather than Ohtani and Matt Olson.

That being said, it hasn’t been all bad for Tatis on the offensive side of things. His speed is as elite as ever, clocking in with a 95th percentile sprint speed per Statcast. Meanwhile, he’s 25-for-29 on the bases, and figure identical to his 2021 total. What’s more, he’s seen considerable improvements in his strikeout rate. He’s punching out in just 21.7% of his plate appearances this year, a figure that puts him in line with hitters like Francisco Lindor, Jeimer Candelario and Josh Bell and pushes him to better than league average in terms of strikeouts for the first time in his career.

That improvement in strikeouts is thanks to Tatis posting the highest full-season contact rate of his career, as he’s made contact on 71.4% of his swings compared to 68.4% for his career entering his season. Unfortunately, he’s also swinging more than he did in his first three seasons. While he entered 2023 swinging at less than half of the pitches he’s seen in his career (49.1%), that figure has jumped to 54.3% in 2023. While that isn’t necessarily a problem, those additional swings are primarily occurring outside the strike zone: after swinging at 32% of pitches seen outside of the zone from 2019-21, he’s swinging at 36.1% of those same pitches this year. Given that, it’s hardly a surprise he’s posting the lowest barrel rate of his career (11.9%) despite a Hard-Hit rate that’s largely in line with his career norms.

Only time will tell if Tatis will be able to recapture his elite power stroke in the future by swinging less often outside of the strike zone. Fortunately for the Padres, though, Tatis remains an immensely valuable player even if his 2023 performance with the bat is his new normal. Tatis has been worth 4.0 fWAR and 5.0 rWAR this season. That fWAR figure puts him in the same ballpark as quality players like Soto, Dansby Swanson and Cody Bellinger this year, while his rWAR is the eighth-highest total in the NL this season. With 11 more years left on Tatis’s megadeal with the Padres, it’s surely a relief to A.J. Preller’s front office that the player they’ll be paying through his age-35 season can still play at an All Star-caliber level, even if he’s no longer be the 40-homer shortstop he was in 2021.

NL West Notes: Padres, Tatis, Wood, Dodgers

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While the Padres were swept in today’s doubleheader against the Phillies, dropping their season record to 44-49 that puts them ten games back in the NL West, the club is nonetheless expected to pursue additions prior to August 1’s trade deadline. Club chairman Peter Seidler indicated as much earlier in the month, and now Jon Heyman of the New York Post adds additional details about the team’s expected deadline approach. While San Diego will look to make additions, Heyman suggests it will be a far more modest than the massive outlay last year that brought back Juan Soto, Josh Hader, and Josh Bell. The club reportedly hopes to add a bat to the lineup, along with possibly a relief arm to the bullpen.

With clear starters entrenched all across the infield and outfield, the clearest hole in the club’s lineup appears to be at designated hitter. The club recently released Nelson Cruz, and fellow offseason signing Matt Carpenter has struggled similarly with a 76 wRC+ in 191 plate appearances this season. Rougned Odor and Brandon Dixon have also mixed in recently, though both are also hitting well below league average. Given this need at DH, the Padres should have plenty of options on the rental market. Speculatively speaking, Tommy Pham woulld certainly improve the club’s production at the DH spot, while a more versatile player like Cody Bellinger could do the same while also mixing in at all three outfield spots and at first base.

More from around the NL West…

  • Sticking with the Padres, Fernando Tatis Jr. exited play against the Phillies today with an apparent injury. As noted by Annie Heilbrunn of the San Diego Union-Tribune, manager Bob Melvin told reporters that Tatis suffered a twisted ankle on the warning track and left the game after his ankle began to swell. Tatis is currently considered day-to-day, though given Tatis’s injury history and importance to the Padres, it would hardly be surprising if the club decided to sit him for a game or two to ensure the issue doesn’t become more significant.
  • Giants left-hander Alex Wood is slated to take the ball for a start tomorrow against the Pirates, as noted by Susan Sussler of the San Francisco Chronicle. Across 50 innings of work this season, Wood sports a 4.68 ERA and 4.74 FIP. He was moved to the bullpen at the end of June and sports a 3.09 ERA in 11 2/3 innings of work since then, including two five-inning, scoreless appearances. Now, Wood will get another opportunity as a member of the club’s starting rotation where he will be joined by Logan Webb, Alex Cobb, and Ross Stripling.
  • The Dodgers have struggled to keep their starting pitchers healthy this season as each of Clayton Kershaw, Julio Urias, Dustin May, Tony Gonsolin, Noah Syndergaard, Ryan Pepiot, Michael Grove, and Gavin Stone have spent time on the injured list throughout the season. Fortunately for LA, the club appears poised to get reinforcements from the injured list in the near future, with both Syndergaard and Pepiot beginning rehab assignments with Triple-A Oklahoma City per Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register. Pepiot made his first appearance since Spring Training with Oklahoma City yesterday, allowing one run over two innings while racking up two strikeouts. Syndergaard, meanwhile, allowed two runs on four hits over five innings of work in a start this evening, striking out six without issuing a walk. Both pitchers, if healthy and effective, figure to impact a Dodgers club that has surged to recapture the lead in the NL West race in recent days.

Padres Notes: Bogaerts, Odor, Tatis

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Padres manager Bob Melvin provided an update on the injury situations of second baseman Rougned Odor and shortstop Xander Bogaerts after last night’s game against the Cubs. As noted by Annie Heilbrunn of the San Diego Union Tribune, Melvin said that both Odor, who’s dealing with a left groin strain, and Bogaerts, who has struggled with wrist soreness throughout the season, will be assessed today, with Melvin admitting that there is “probably the potential of” a roster move to accommodate their ailing middle infield duo sometime today.

Melvin’s comments come after MLB.com’s AJ Cassavell noted earlier in the day that the Padres are hopeful Odor can avoid going on the injured list. After signing a minor league deal with the Padres this offseason and managing to break camp with the club, Odor has enjoyed a start to the season that, if maintained, would make the 2023 campaign his best since his age-22 season with the Rangers back in 2016. In 99 trips to the plate with the Padres this season, Odor has slashed .216/.303/.420, good for a 101 wRC+ that’s a massive jump from the 78 wRC+ figure he posted across the 2019-2022 campaigns.

Odor’s rebound at the plate has come through a considerable improvement in place discipline, as the lefty has posted a strikeout rate of just 20.2%, a steep drop from the 27.8% rate Odor punched out over the past four seasons. He’s paired the reduced strikeouts with a 10.1% walk rate that would be the best of his career if he can maintain it over the full season.

Bogaerts, meanwhile, commented on his wrist troubles to reporters, with Cassavell relaying that he’ll likely be out of the lineup today, if not longer, though he hopes to avoid a stint on the IL. Melvin confirmed that his shortstop would likely have today off, as Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union Tribune notes that the manager says they’ll see how Bogaerts responds to a day off before making a decision regarding a potential IL trip. As noted by The Athletic’s Dennis Lin, Bogaerts notes that this is the longest he’s played through wrist discomfort, citing the absence of third baseman Manny Machado as the reason he felt the need to try and push through the ailment.

With Odor and Bogaerts both at risk of missing time, the Padres will likely need to reconfigure their infield picture aside from Machado, who is entrenched at third base. Ha-Seong Kim has experience at both second base and shortstop, while Brandon Dixon has mostly played first base for the Padres this season but has experience at the keystone as well. Jake Cronenworth can play all three positions, while both Alfonso Rivas and Matt Carpenter could factor in at first base as well if necessary.

One solution the Padres seem unlikely to go with is returning Fernando Tatis Jr. to the infield. A shortstop for the majority of his career, Tatis has moved to the outfield full time in 2023, appearing exclusively in right field so far this season. That being said, more positional flexibility could still be in Tatis’s future, as noted by Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union Tribune. Acee elaborates that with Jose Azocar optioned to Triple-A, the Padres lack a proper back-up option in center field behind Trent Grisham.

Tatis, of course, previously expressed a desire to play center field earlier this season, and Acee relays that Melvin appears open to the idea, saying that “He plays pretty good right field for us right now… But if we needed to do something or if something happened in-game or we wanted to give Grish another day off, (Tatis) has been taking fly balls in center field.”

Padres Reinstate Fernando Tatis Jr.

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Fernando Tatis Jr. is back in the majors. The Padres officially reinstated him from the restricted list following the completion of his performance-enhancing drug suspension on Thursday evening. San Diego optioned infielder/outfeilder Brandon Dixon to Triple-A El Paso to open room on the big league roster. The Friars transferred reliever Robert Suarez from the 15-day to the 60-day injured list.

Tatis steps into the leadoff spot tonight against Arizona right-hander Ryne Nelson. He’ll play right field in his first MLB contest since October 3, 2021. Tatis is expected to play right field on a near everyday basis in 2023. He lost his former shortstop position when San Diego inked Xander Bogaerts to a $280MM free agent contract over the winter. With Ha-Seong Kim, Jake Cronenworth and Manny Machado rounding out the infield, Tatis gets kicked onto the grass.

While there’ll certainly be some intrigue about how he acclimates to a position at which he has just 151 1/3 innings of MLB experience, the primary question will be how quickly he finds his stride offensively. Tatis was one of the game’s best hitters over his first three seasons, combining to hit .282/.364/.611 between 2019-21. By measure of wRC+, that was the ninth-best offensive output among batters with at least 500 plate appearances.

Whether the 24-year-old can recapture that kind of production remains to be seen. Since his last MLB game, he’s undergone three surgeries — two on the left wrist he fractured in a motorcycle accident, one on his left shoulder that had ailed him back to 2021. He also tested positive for the performance-enhancing drug Clostebol and was handed an 80-game suspension at the start of last August. That carried into this season, with Tatis sitting out the Friars’ first 20 games. San Diego has opened with a middling 9-11 start, allowing ten more runs than they’ve scored.

Tatis was permitted to play in Spring Training. He got into 16 exhibition games, hitting .273/.340/.432. Shortly after the regular season opened, Tatis went on a rehab stint with El Paso. He was the best hitter in the Pacific Coast League for a week. Tatis blasted seven home runs, walked six times and struck out on just three occasions in eight games. He hit .515/.590/1.212 in 39 trips to the plate for the Chihuahuas before reporting to the Padres a few days ago.

Players on the restricted list don’t count against the 40-man roster. To clear a spot, San Diego transferred Suarez to the 60-day IL. That backdates to his Opening Day placement on the injured list but still officially rules him out until the final week in May.

Suarez opened the season on the IL with inflammation in his throwing elbow. He was shut down from throwing at the start of this month after feeling continued discomfort and is without a clear recovery timetable. It’s an inauspicious start to the five-year, $46MM contract he inked at the start of last offseason. The hard-throwing Suarez provided the Padres 47 2/3 innings of 2.27 ERA ball during his initial MLB campaign last year, emerging as one of their highest-leverage relievers by the playoffs.

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