In the wake of Fernando Tatis’ 80 game suspension, Padres GM talked about Tatis showing a lack of maturity, that such had become a pattern with him. He also talked of trust issues. Obviously, the comment from Prellier was borne of emotion—disappointment and frustration at the development. However, it’s the sort of thing that can fester on the player’s side and long-term sour relationships.
The Padres have no one to blame but themselves if they are starting to feel buyer’s remorse over signing Tatis to a 14-year $340M deal last year.
One reason why their nerves might be a bit more raw than expected: apparently they did not know about the positive test until today either. They’d made a huge trade at the deadline for Juan Soto hoping to win big now, with him, Tatis and Manny Machado all pounding baseballs out of yards. Instead they are still 16 games behind the Dodgers, clinging to the last playoff spot and without Tatis until late April or May some time next year.
Meanwhile, even if the Padres GM and star shortstop successfully rebuild the relationship…no matter how long Tatis plays baseball…this suspension is going to repeatedly be mentioned in news articles about him. Again and again and again. Forever.
Fan Interference 