Fernando Tatis Jr. livened up the San Diego Padres’ spring this week, and not in a good way.
He left Wednesday’s 5-4 win over the Cincinnati Reds when he suffered shoulder pain after fielding a ground ball. But by Thursday, manager Jayce Tingler told MLB.com Tatis was “doing well” and would be ready to play again within a couple days.
His manager added that Tatis, the Padres’ $340-million man, probably would have played despite the pain in the regular season.
Tingler called him “very mature, very responsible” for raising the issue in the spring, when he can nurse the slight injury to prevent it from becoming a problem.
The Padres have taken a cautious approach with starter Dinelson Lamet as well. He made his first spring appearance Wednesday night, giving up one run in an inning of work in the Padres’ 7-3 loss to the San Francisco Giants.
“I wanted to come in healthy and come out healthy and I was able to do that,” Lamet told MLB.com. “I didn’t feel off on the mound.”
Elbow woes cut his season short late in 2020, when he had a breakout year, posting a 2.09 ERA.
He doesn’t want that to happen again – he doesn’t plan to be with the club on Opening Day, now just a week away – because he wants to be there for long haul in 2021.
“One of the biggest things is not having a step in the wrong direction,” he told MLB.
Adrian Morejon also pitched Wednesday, giving up two runs in 3.1 innings, but striking out six.
The Padres, with a 9-12 record this spring, play the Texas Rangers at 6:40 p.m. Thursday. Yu Darvish will take the mound.