Fernando Tatis Jr. is just days away from returning to the Padres after serving an 80-game suspension for performance-enhancing drugs. In the meantime, the outfielder is preparing for the majors by playing for the Triple A El Paso Chihuahuas, and Tatis seems ready for his return—to say the least.
In his past two games, Tatis has collected eight consecutive hits, including five home runs. He also has produced 11 RBIs and 25 total bases in those games against the Albuquerque Isotopes and now has six total homers in seven minor league games this year.
Take a look at two of those homers in the video clips below:
Fernando Tatis Jr. might be pretty good at this baseball thing.
— Minor League Baseball (@MiLB) April 16, 2023
Second long ball of the night: pic.twitter.com/dnVpYpbUKA
Tatis hasn’t played in the majors since 2021, when he led the National League with 42 home runs, was named to the All-Star Game and finished third for NL MVP. Last year, he suffered an injury in the offseason before MLB suspended him while he was rehabbing.
While preparing for the ’23 season, Tatis is getting acclimated to his new position in right field, as the Padres signed Xander Bogaerts to take over at shortstop. Manager Bob Melvin also has already said that Tatis likely will bat leadoff for San Diego when he is reinstated.
Tatis is eligible to return to the Padres when they play at Arizona on Thursday.
