The San Diego Padres were losing 7-0 to the Minnesota Twins on Sunday when their day took a turn for the worse. After losing Xander Bogaerts for the rest of the regular season earlier in the weekend, they have another injury scare on their hands. Fernando Tatis Jr left the Padres game with an apparent right leg injury, per radio broadcaster Sammy Levitt.
“Something to keep an eye on. Fernando Tatis Jr. appeared to grab at the back of his right leg as he ran in for a ball in the bottom of the 7th. Tatis does not return to right field for the 8th, albeit the Padres trail 7-0,” Levitt reported.
The Padres cannot afford to lose Tatis from their lineup as the National League West race heats up. They entered Sunday one game behind the Los Angeles Dodgers for the division lead. While making the playoffs is a near guarantee, they would love a free pass into the Division Series.
Tatis has been sensational for the Padres this season. He entered Sunday with an .806 OPS and a ridiculous 5.5 bWAR in 133 games. A lot of that WAR comes from his defense in right field, which keeps improving. This hot stretch started in the postseason, where he posted a 1.500 OPS in seven games. Since then, he has been one of San Diego's best players.
The Padres host the Baltimore Orioles for three games after this set with the Twins. Despite Baltimore's poor record, they have been solid recently. They do not play the Dodgers for the rest of the season, so they will need to beat up on teams in September to win the division. That will be harder without Bogaerts, and nearly impossible if Tatis misses any time.
The Padres lost the series to the Twins to fall to 76-61 on the season.
