WASHINGTON — Fernando Tatis Jr. will not play for the Padres this season.
The 23-year-old shortstop was suspended Friday for 80 games by Major League Baseball for violation of the league’s performance-enhancing drug policy.
“I have been informed by Major League Baseball that a test sample I submitted returned a positive result for Clostebol, a banned substance,” Tatis said in a statement issued by the MLB Players Association. “It turns out that I inadvertently took a medication to treat ringworm that contained Clostebol. I should have used the resources available to me in order to ensure that no banned substances were in what I took. I failed to do so. I want to apologize to Peter (Seidler, the Padres’ chairman) AJ (Preller, the Padres’ President of Baseball Operation), the entire Padres organization, my teammates, Major League Baseball, and fans everywhere for my mistake. I have no excuse for my error, and I would never do anything to cheat or disrespect this game I love. I have taken countless drug tests throughout my professional career, including on March 29, 2022, all of which have returned negative results until this test. I am completely devastated. There is nowhere else in the world I would rather be than on the field competing with my teammates. After initially appealing the suspension, I have realized that my mistake was the cause of this result, and for that reason I have decided to start serving my suspension immediately. I look forward to rejoining my teammates on the field in 2023.”
Tatis, who has not played in 2022 after an offseason motorcycle accident, will now miss the rest of this season and the first 32 games of next season. He is ineligible for the postseason as well.
Tatis, who became one of the biggest stars in the sport almost as soon as he debuted in 2019, is in the second year of a 14-year, $340 million contract. His salary is $5 million this year and $7 million in 2023.
“It’s very disappointing,” Preller said Friday night in a tunnel outside the visitors’ clubhouse at Nationals Park. “He’s somebody that from the organization’s standpoint we’ve invested time and money into. When he’s on the field, he’s a difference maker. You have to learn from the situations. We were hoping that from the offseason to now that there would be some maturity, and obviously with the news today, it’s more of a pattern and it’s something that we’ve got to to dig a bit more into. ... I’m sure he’s very disappointed. But at the end of the day, it’s one thing to say it. You’ve got to start showing by your actions.”
Preller said he received a call from one of Tatis’ representatives shortly before 4 p.m. ET. Multiple team sources said no one with the club had an inkling of Tatis’ failed test until then.
“We were surprised and extremely disappointed to learn today that Fernando Tatis Jr. tested positive for a performance-enhancing substance in violation of Major League Baseball’s Joint Prevention and Treatment Program and subsequently received an 80-game suspension without pay,” the Padres said in a statement. “We fully support the Program and are hopeful that Fernando will learn from this experience.”
Tatis led the National League with 42 home runs in 2022 and is among the league’s most exciting players. Last June, he became the fastest player in history to reach 50 career home runs and 50 career stolen bases. But he has played in just 273 of the Padres’ 498 games since his debut on opening day in 2019.
Preller told players about the suspension in a team meeting shortly before they took the field for Friday night’s game against the Nationals. Bob Melvin spoke after Preller.
“I think the message from really everybody was we have a good team, we have a good group,” Preller said. “And the goal is to win a World Series. We haven’t had Tati for this season. So, it’s not like we’ve had him in the lineup and now we won’t. I think to a man, all the guys in the clubhouse believe we can win; they know we can win. It’s never been about one player. I think the sentiment coming from Bob and coming from all the players was this really doesn’t change what are what we’re looking to accomplish.”
The suspension was announced by MLB a couple minutes before the game began.
The game’s second batter was Juan Soto, who received a long standing ovation and acknowledged the crowd before his at-bat.
Soto and first baseman Josh Bell were acquired at the trade deadline last week, and the Padres had looked to the return of Tatis to further enhance their lineup. The trades for Bell and Soto, as well as utility man Brandon Drury, seem even more crucial now.
