PEORIA, Arizona. — Tell me about the brutal way the Padres camp was set up.
Superstar shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr broke his left wrist in the offseason and will be out for up to three months, with the injury likely requiring surgery, general manager AJ Preller said Monday.
The exact origin of the injury is unclear, although Tatis noted that he first felt the aggravation during a backswing about a month ago. Doctors believe that Tatis probably injured his wrist prior to this bout, though he says he only felt it when he started picking up momentum before the season.
“It’s terrible,” Tatis said, speaking Monday during the first full day of Padres camp. “I feel that everyone is disappointed, especially me. I feel like we have a good chance as a team this year and I just want to be close to my teammates.”
Tatis was involved in a minor motorcycle accident in December, but it’s unclear if the two are related. He said he had “bumps and bruises” but after that his wrist mostly felt fine.
The Padres would certainly take a big hit without Tatis, their perennial MVP candidate, who batted .282/.364/.611 with 42 NL-leading homers and earned 6.6 bWAR last season.
It seems unlikely that the Padres will solve Tatis’s absence by making a move. They believe they already have a number of quality internal candidates, including Jake Cronenworth and Ha-Sung Kim. It is noteworthy that promising player CJ Abrams also impressed during the training camp.
“Obviously it’s a hit,” new Padres manager Bob Melvin said. “But it gives someone else an opportunity… We signed Kim for a reason last year. He will get a great opportunity here. Cronenworth can play there. Let’s see where Abrams and I are in the future.” Someone will be outside.”
Tatis’ injury was the latest blow in a string of ailments for the star buddy, who has now missed significant time in three of his first four seasons. In 2019, he dealt with a back ailment that ended his season in mid-August. Tatis had four separate shoulder subluxations last year that placed him on the injured list twice.
Tatis chose not to have shoulder surgery during the off-season, noting that his strengthening exercises paid off. He believes the injury has completely healed.
“The shoulder is in perfect condition,” Tatis said.
The wrist, of course, is a different story. Tatis said he and the Padres have not yet made a final decision about the operation. Team doctors are still evaluating the nature of the injury.
“Looks like he’s going to have surgery,” Preller said. “In the next couple of days, he has several more tests. But it seems that this week, most likely, there will be an operation to repair the fracture. Let’s see where he goes. This fracture can usually take up to three months of recovery time. Obviously, he quickly healed some injuries in the past.”