San Diego Padres superstar Fernando Tatis Jr. will make his long-awaited 2023 debut on Thursday night, and the 24-year-old shared a positive tweet before his first MLB at-bat in 563 days.
“Que bonito día,” Tatis wrote on Thursday. In English: “What a beautiful day.”
It certainly will be a beautiful evening in Arizona on Thursday, with sunny skies forecasted for Tatis' highly-anticipated return to the Padres lineup against their divisional rival Diamondbacks.
Thursday marks the first of a four-game series that will last throughout the weekend between the 9-11 Padres and 11-8 Diamondbacks.
Tatis Jr. returned to San Diego on Monday after absolutely torching Triple-A pitching. During his 12-day stint in El Paso, Tatis was no match for the Pacific Coast League pitchers, raking a phenomenal .515/.590/.1.212 slash line with seven home runs, two stolen bases and a 6:3 walk to strikeout ratio over 39 plate appearances.
Tatis has been working out at Petco Park over the last three days in anticipation for his reinstatement to the active roster ahead of Thursday's game in Arizona.
Padres manager Bob Melvin said earlier this month that the plan was for Tatis to bat out of the leadoff spot once he's reinstated, which makes a lot of sense considering San Diego has really struggled to score runs in the early going.
The team has just two over its last four games, which is uncanny with a lineup that boasts Juan Soto, Manny Machado and Xander Bogaerts. Tatis' return couldn't have come at a better time for the Padres, who are sore for the kind of offense the elite infielder can produce.
Tatis fractured his left wrist in a motorcycle accident in Dec. 2021 which led to surgery that ruled him out for at least the first three months of the 2022 season. While he recovered, he tested positive for Clostebol, a performance enhancing substance. That led to an 80-game suspension beginning in August.
Now, 563 days since he last played in the majors, it'll be a beautiful night for baseball as Padres' Fernando Tatis Jr. makes his return to Major League Baseball.
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