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Alden Gonzalez, ESPN staff writer
SAN DIEGO – For Fernando Tatis Jr., the purest form of baseball takes place at home, in the Dominican Republic, inside the loud stadiums and tense environments unique to what is colloquially known as winter ball. Tatis plays there whenever he gets the chance, even in years when the grueling Major League Baseball season wears down his body. It brings him joy. In some ways, Tatis has often expressed that it gives him life. Perhaps not surprisingly, Tatis is starring in his first real playoff experience. Electricity made it possible for him.
“I feed off that kind of energy,” Tatis said after helping lift his San Diego Padres to a 6-5 win in Game 3 and a 2-1 lead over the rival Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League Division Series. “When the fans come, in meaningful games, you leave everything you’ve got out there – I feel like I’m taking it to another level. My mentality, my body – everything is through the roof.”
Tatis’ last home run, the highlight of a six-inning second inning, was his fourth in five appearances in these playoffs, already tied with Jim Leyritz in 1998 and Manny Machado in 2022 for the most postseason home runs in Padres history. . Despite not reaching base in his other three at-bats Tuesday night, Tatis boasts a 1.970 OPS in that span. He is the second player — along with Carlos Beltran, who pitched in October for the 2024 Houston Astros — to record at least 10 hits and four home runs through his first five postseason games, according to ESPN research.
“Man, he’s seeing the ball really big now,” Padres outfielder Xander Bogaerts said in Spanish. “He’s doing unbelievable things. Obviously we know he’s super talented. We know that. He’s a great kid, he works hard. I’ve seen that since I got here. He’s had injuries, but he’s worked hard to get back here.” “And he’s doing some really cool things right now.”
The big inning that ultimately propelled the Padres to victory summed up the identity of their offense. They shortened their swings to take advantage of the vast dimensions of their spacious stadium, stringing together six singles. They did the little things well, most notably Machado veering slightly off the base path to draw an errant throw from Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman. They excelled at situational hitting, with Kyle Higashioka lofting a deep fly ball to score a run. They produced with runners in scoring position, this time with David Peralta hitting a double down the right field line. And then, they got a big hit.
Tatis served it up, unloading a 0-2 fastball from Walker Buehler that sailed right over the heart of the plate and launched it 398 feet to left-center field. Tatis stood in the batter’s box until the baseball bounced off the left-field scoreboard, then gleefully circled the bases, channeling the energy of 47,744 fans — a Petco Park record — who had spiraled into hysteria.
“Man, when I hit her, I don’t know, she just passed out,” Tatis said.
The Dodgers came within a run when a fly ball from Teoscar Hernandez carried over the center field fence for a third inning grand slam. But the Padres’ vaunted bullpen wouldn’t let them get any closer. Jeremiah Estrada, Jason Adam, Tanner Scott and Robert Suarez relieved the ineffective Michael King and combined for four scoreless innings, allowing just one base runner and striking out six batters.
The Padres, aggressors since the All-Star break, will head to the bullpen in Game 4, with Dylan Cease starting on short rest. The Dodgers, very short on starting pitching, will counter with the bullpen. The Dodgers are coming off a division title in 12 years, but they lost a season series to the Padres for the first time since 2010 and are noticeably broken at the moment. Their shortstop, Miguel Rojas, exited early after aggravating an adductor tear that he continues to try to play through. Freeman, the first baseman and No. 3 hitter, still appeared to be limited in action due to a sprained right ankle.
Also concerning: The Dodgers can’t figure out how to tame Tatis. The Padres’ star right fielder put 12 balls into play over the first three games of this series. Eight of them traveled more than 100 miles per hour. He’s 6-for-12 with five extra-base hits and has yet to hit a home run.
“He is one of many players on our team who appreciates, enjoys and embraces the bright lights,” Padres manager Mike Shildt said. “He just wants to play and perform.”
When Tatis played in the postseason for the first time, it was in 2020, a year in which the COVID-19 pandemic kept fans away from stadiums. When the Padres returned in 2022, Tatis was coming off a nightmare season that began with a wrist injury suffered in an offseason motorcycle accident that was followed by an 80-game suspension for testing positive for a performance-enhancing substance, forever tarnishing his image. .
“He’s one of many players on our team who appreciates, enjoys and embraces the bright lights. He just wants to play and perform.”
Padres coach Mike Shields on Fernando Tatis Jr.
He played in 141 games in 2023, but wasn’t feeling like himself, so he returned home the following winter and played winter ball for his father, Fernando Tatis Sr. The younger Tatis arrived at spring training earlier this year determined to re-establish himself as a football player. star, but then a stress reaction in his right femur ruled him out for more than two months. He resurfaced in September, but his return to stardom occurred in October.
Tatis’ first swing of the postseason sailed over the fence, setting the tone in the Padres’ sweep of the Atlanta Braves in the wild-card round. In the Game 2 win over the Dodgers, he homered twice, added a double, jumped to steal Freeman’s extra bases in the right-center field gap and spent most of the night taunting an angry Dodger Stadium crowd. While most of his teammates lamented the animosity that surrounded them Sunday night, Tatis seemed to relish it.
“At the end of the day, it’s a show. We have to enjoy every moment,” Tatis said at the time.
He’s definitely enjoying it.
