How Fernando Tatis Jr. impacts the MLB Power Rankings

The Fernando Tatis Jr. suspension will drop the San Diego Padres in this week’s upcoming MLB Power Rankings.

In last week’s MLB Power Rankings, the San Diego Padres climbed all the way up to No. 5. The Juan Soto trade had a huge impact on how fans viewed the club. Along with what they already had and the impending return of star shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr., it looked like everything would go their way in the final month and a half and into the postseason.

Then it all changed on Friday when it was announced that Tatis Jr. would be suspended for 80 games after testing positive for PEDs. Without question, this hurts the Padres. They were depending on him to come back and produce.

In the MLB Power Rankings, the Padres are taking a big punch in the upcoming week.

Fernando Tatis Jr. suspension will hurt the Padres in the MLB Power Rankings

Without spoiling too much and because the final list isn’t out quite yet, this week’s MLB Power Rankings will not feature the Padres at No. 5. They won’t even be No. 6. Barring some kind of epic final days of the weekend, they won’t even be at No. 7.

The Tatis Jr. suspension drops the Padres immediately in the MLB Power Rankings the same way the Soto trade impacted them positively. The timing of it is awful. Although they may not have directed themselves all that much differently if they knew about this before the trade deadline, there is no question this hurts a little bit more.

The MLB Power Rankings aren’t purely about where teams are in the standings. There’s momentum to take into consideration. A look at the roster, the health of certain players, and what likely lies ahead all must be taken into account.

The Padres have managed to hang around as a top ten in many of the weekly lists. They’ll probably remain there again in the coming week. After all, they’ve been one of the better National League clubs all year in the absence of their star shortstop.

Now with the knowledge that he won’t be charging in as the leader of the cavalry later this season, Fernando Tatis Jr. will alone force San Diego down behind teams like the Philadelphia Phillies and St. Louis Cardinals. It may not last for long. It will be up to the guys they still have around to make up for his absence that will carry over into 2023.