SAN DIEGO — Padres star right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr. said he might not return from a stress reaction in his right thigh bone until after the All-Star Game.
Tatis was placed on the 10-day injured list on Monday after dealing with the injury for essentially the whole season.
“It’s a huge gap,” Tatis said when asked about the timetable for his return. “I don’t want to put it out there because people are going to expect stuff. But it’s going to be some time. We know with the right stuff we’re trying to aim after the All-Star Game, but we’re talking about something serious in my bone, in my right leg.”
“It can get worse, and we don’t want that,” Tatis said after the Padres’ 7-6, 10-inning win over the Washington Nationals. “I was playing through it, and I probably could have kept going, but the doctors recommended to heal it now so that way it doesn’t get worse. It’s just better that way.”
Tatis has been dealing with what had been described as a quadriceps injury. Manager Mike Shildt said the team discovered the stress reaction in his femur a few days ago after imaging. The manager said Tatis could play with the injury but that it won’t get better without rest.
Tatis was hit by a pitch near his left elbow on Friday night against the Milwaukee Brewers and was removed from the game two innings later. He didn’t play Saturday or Sunday.
Tatis leads the Padres with 14 home runs, including a 446-foot shot on Thursday night.
He won the National League Gold Glove and Platinum Glove awards last year in his first season in right field.
Tatis brought Shildt some popcorn in the dugout in the ninth inning Monday night.
“Good luck popcorn,” Tatis said.
The Nationals scored three runs in the 10th, and the Padres then scored four in the bottom of the inning, walking it off on Jurickson Profar‘s two-run single.
The Nationals intentionally walked major league hits leader Luis Arraez to get to Profar, whose hit into the right-center gap bounced over the fence. Profar rounded first base, swerved toward the infield celebration, pulled off his helmet and raised his arms in the air.
“I felt disrespected,” Profar said about the intentional walk.
Asked about his emotions, he said: “It was two things: the walk and then this pitch up and in, up to my face. So, that pumped me up a lot.”
Winning after hearing the news about Tatis “was very important,” Profar said. “We still have a really good team, and obviously, he makes us great. But we still have a lot of good players in here that play really good baseball and know how to how to win like we did tonight.”
Shildt also said Yu Darvish is dealing with elbow inflammation and won’t start Tuesday night against the Nationals, as planned. Darvish is on the IL with a groin strain.
Rookie Adam Mazur was recalled from Triple-A El Paso to start Tuesday night. The Padres also recalled infielder Eguy Rosario from Triple-A and selected the contract of outfielder Bryce Johnson. They optioned right-hander Jhony Brito and outfielder Jose Azocar to Triple-A.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Source: www.espn.com