Fernando Tatis Jr. made his long-awaited return Thursday, but he wasn’t the outfielder who stood out in the Padres‘ 7-5 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Trent Grisham drove in four runs on two hits, both two-run doubles, including one in the sixth inning that broke a 5-5 tie. The centerfielder also made a great sliding catch in the third to rob Gabriel Moreno, with Christian Walker, who had doubled, in scoring position.
Tatis, who tore up Triple A during his recent rehabilitation stint, went 0-for-5 with two strikeouts. His shift to right field had a couple of bumps – including a late near-collision with Ha-Seong Kim.
He allowed a runner to take an extra base in Arizona’s big inning against Michael Wacha, but made an eye-catching running grab in the eighth.
“It’s not that easy to go from shortstop to right field,” manager Bob Melvin told Bally Sports San Diego. “Then to have as much time off as he did – there’s going to be some real great plays then some plays that he’s going to learn from.”
Tatis missed all of 2022, first due to a wrist fracture, then just as he was about to come back in August, he tested positive for use of a PED.
About that big inning – Matt Carpenter had just hit a solo home run in the top of the fourth to give Wacha a 5-1 lead, but the starter couldn’t hold on. He gave up three runs, then threw two wild pitches to Corbin Carroll allowing Lourdes Gurriel to score and tie it up.
The Diamondbacks tagged Wacha for 10 hits, but he bullpen quieted them. Brent Honeywell, Tim Hill and Steven Wilson held Arizona scoreless for four innings and Josh Hader came in to pitch a 1-2-3 ninth for the save. The bullpen retired 12 in a row to end the game.
Xander Bogaerts also had a two-run homer.
Meanwhile, another Padre will return – though Joe Musgrove was sidelined for a much shorter period than Tatis – due to a broken toe suffered in a spring training mishap. The right hander is set to take the mound Saturday.
The Padres, who began a seven-game road trip Thursday, are scheduled to start Seth Lugo and Yu Darvish Friday and Sunday.
