The Dodgers-Padres matchup on Sunday Night Baseball included some late-game dramatics as Mookie Betts tied the game in the ninth inning with a solo home run.
Betts’s brilliant piece of hitting forced extra innings between the NL West rivals, and prompted a surprising comment from one member of the broadcasting booth.
After his Betts’s late heroics, ESPN analyst Eduardo Perez fired off a shot at San Diego outfielder Fernando Tatis Jr., seemingly suggesting that the 24-year-old wasn’t a true MLB superstar.
“That’s what a superstar looks like, Nando,” said Perez, sending a message to Tatis after Betts’s game-tying homer.
The broadcast showed Tatis looking expressionless in the outfield, before briefly flashing to Betts who was celebrating outside the L.A. dugout.
“That’s what a superstar looks like, Nando” 😳 pic.twitter.com/uaISYjwWGi
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) May 8, 2023
Tatis, of course, was one of baseball’s brightest up-and-coming stars before running into some turmoil in his career. He was suspended 80 games for violating MLB’s performance-enhancing drugs policy, before subsequently undergoing season-ending shoulder surgery. The string of incidents cost him the entire 2022 season, and also impacted his reputation.
That much was clear by the tone of the message from Perez, who seemingly indicated that Tatis should be trying to follow more closely in the footsteps of Betts, who has long been one of MLB’s biggest stars.
The Dodgers went on to win in extra innings, 5–2. Tatis was 1-for-5 at the plate with one run and a strikeout.
