The Padres managed to hang on to a 5-4 spring win over the Reds on Tuesday afternoon, but that fact couldn’t be any farther from the minds of the Padres and their fans after Fernando Tatis Jr. left the game early in the third with an undisclosed injury.
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— San Diego Padres (@Padres) March 23, 2021
With one out in the top of the third, Reds second baseman Jonathan India hit a grounder to shortstop which Tatis snagged before one-hopping it to first to make the routine play. But moments later, Jayce Tingler and the team’s trainer jogged out on to the field to meet Tatis by the mound. All three walked off the field together with Tatis propping his right arm on his hip the whole way. On the re-watch, nothing egregious stands out, so the hope is that it was just out of an abundance of caution, but the entire fan base is likely still holding their breath as of this morning while they wait for any news about the health of their superstar.
As far as how the rest of the game went, Mackenzie Gore started on the mound and pitched just under four innings. He finished with a pair of Ks and allowed two runs with a walk. Tim Hill and Reiss Knehr also struck out two, apiece.
Tucupita Marcano scored the game-winning runs on a two-RBI double in the bottom of the seventh. He’s hitting .467 this spring and isn’t being talked about enough. On the other hand, Jurickson Profar finished 1-of-2 on the day but he’s hitting just .061 this month. Ha-Seong Kim is also hitting just .125, as well. He finished 1-for-3 on the day with a strikeout.
Here’s to hoping we hear some GOOD news regarding Tatis’ situation later today. The Padres aren’t back on the field until 7:05 p.m. tonight against the Giants.