Managing without Tatis
Image Courtesy of: Orlando Ramirez/USA TODAY Sports
On Friday, August 12, San Diego Padres’ star shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. was suspended by the MLB for violating its performance-enhancing drug policy. Tatis tested positive for Clostebol, a banned substance in the league. The suspension will start immediately, and it will be without pay. Tatis will also miss the first 33 games of the 2023 campaign.
Tatis has missed the whole season and just began his rehab assignment after returning from surgery to repair a scaphoid bone in his left wrist. He was aiming for a late August or early September return.
The Padres looked to go all in at the trade deadline, acquiring first baseman Josh Bell and superstar outfielder Juan Soto from the Washington Nationals. Adding those two to the lineup (along with Jonathan Drury) boosts their decent roster. A roster without Tatis is still very much in playoff contention and currently holds the last Wild Card spot in the National League.
Ha-Seong Kim has been the replacement for Tatis and has held down the fort nicely in his absence. But with no disrespect to Kim, he is no Tatis. His acrobatics and ability to hit are why he is worth $340 million to the Padres. With the suspension, Tatis will forfeit roughly $3.2 million of that money.
With the suspension of Tatis, the Padres should just keep going. Granted, this is a huge distraction to the team, who were excited that their franchise player was set to return soon. But now they have to push along without him, as they’ve done all year. They have to look past it and look towards finishing the season strong. They currently have a two-game lead over the Milwaukee Brewers in the Wild Card race. If this is too distracting for the team, things could go south very quickly for the Padres.
But I think the Padres will be fine. Adding Soto has brought a ray of sunshine to that locker room. Soto has also been impressive so far in San Diego, and he will most likely help carry them to the postseason. The Padres will be okay if they focus on the bigger picture: Raising the Commissioner’s Trophy on the mound at the end of the season.
