San Diego Padres shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. received positive news on his return from a broken wrist, with his doctor saying Tuesday that he can begin swinging a bat in two weeks.
Tatis met with the doctor in Phoenix, where he underwent X-rays and was given the plan for his next steps.
“This was the first time I came out happy after a doctor’s appointment,” Tatis said Tuesday afternoon, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune.
Tatis reportedly injured the wrist in an offseason motorcycle accident in his native Dominican Republic and had surgery in mid-March.
He said once he is cleared to swing a bat off a tee, it will be another 10 days before he can start hitting pitches from a machine. A minor league rehab assignment is likely to follow.
The projected timeline would put Tatis on track to return in late July or early August, depending on how his rehab goes.
“Once I have my timing, I feel like we’re going to take off from there,” Tatis said, according to the Union-Tribune. “I’ve been playing this game since I was a kid, since I have memory. So it’s more about getting my body in [baseball] shape.”
Tatis, who signed a $340 million, 14-year contract before the 2021 season, has been doing a number of activities, including taking ground balls, throwing and running. Swinging a bat will begin the last major step of his comeback.
Tatis, 23, led the National League with 42 home runs in 2021 and finished third in the MVP balloting.
Source: www.espn.com