Fernando Tatis Jr.’s contract isn’t one the Padres can escape

Tell us if you’ve heard this one before: Fernando Tatis Jr. is failing to elevate an inconsistent San Diego Padres team.

The Padres have lost 11 of 13, with Sunday’s 7-3 loss to the Mets dropping them eight games back in the NL West. Although the Padres are still over .500, their recent stretch shouldn’t exactly inspire hope ahead of a three-game set against the Reds.  

Tatis has played an instrumental part in the Padres’ struggles, with only one home run and a career-worst .666 OPS. He’s managed just 10 extra-base hits and ranks among the sport’s most disappointing players.

“We just know that we’re better than what we’re doing,” Tatis told reporters on Sunday. “We’re working for it. We’re trying to find a way out of it.”

Right now, the Padres should be trying to find a way out of Tatis’ contract.

Fernando Tatis Jr. has failed the Padres this season

When you sign someone to a 14-year, $340 million deal, you’re not just expecting them to be an elite player. You’re committing to them hoping they transform your team into a perennial championship contender.

The 27-year-old Tatis has given the Padres the counting stats, and they’re fresh off consecutive playoff appearances for the first time in two decades. Yet, they’ve never truly felt like legitimate title contenders, not the way the Brewers, Braves, and Phillies have in recent years.

Only so much of the Padres’ extended playoff failures — they’ve reached the NLCS once since their 1998 World Series loss — can be attributed to the Dodgers and Giants’ dynasties.

Padres fans must ask themselves what Tatis has truly done over his seven seasons. A motorcycle accident and a positive drug test cost him the 2022 campaign, with the latter being a permanent stain on an otherwise strong resume.

Although Tatis hit four home runs during the 2024 playoffs, he went just 1-for-12 in last year’s Wild Card Series loss to the Cubs. That’s not what the Padres are paying him over $20 million for — and keep in mind his yearly salary jumps to $25.7 million next season.  

In fairness to Tatis, he’s far from the Padres’ biggest problem. Manny Machado has been dreadful, with a .169 average and negative bWAR in 62 games. First baseman Ty France leads all position players with 1.1 bWAR, an embarrassing feat considering the Padres’ decorated lineup.  

But this is exactly when the Padres need Tatis to step up and justify his contract. We’ve seen Julio Rodríguez and Aaron Judge repeatedly do it with the Mariners and Yankees.

Invoking Judge’s name might seem overboard, but all three players are on contracts of at least seven years. It’s no coincidence that the Mariners have made the playoffs twice in the last four seasons after a 21-year drought.

The Padres need to accept the reality of who Fernando Tatis Jr. is

The easiest way to silence critics is by winning a championship. It’s also incredibly difficult, especially when sharing a division with the Dodgers.

Tatis is a great player, and he’s provided Padres fans with no shortage of memorable moments since his 2019 debut. All of that can be true, and it is true.

But at the same time, impressive stats only go so far if you can’t carry your team when you’re most needed. Why else would the Padres have paid Tatis the big bucks?

Tatis has mostly erased the concerns about his maturity, and he deserves credit. Unlike former teammate Jurickson Profar, who was suspended for the entire 2026 season following a second positive test for performance-enhancing drugs, Tatis has not had a second violation.

Great players are measured by their championships, though, and it’s difficult to envision the Padres winning their first World Series title with Tatis as the face of the franchise.

Don’t believe me? Ask yourself how and why the Padres’ lone NLCS appearance in the Tatis era came when their superstar was injured and suspended.

Makes you wonder, doesn’t it?

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