Tatis’ return comes at perfect time for Padres
This story was excerpted from AJ Cassavell’s Padres Beat publication. To learn the complete publication, click on right here. And subscribe to get it recurrently in your inbox.
Hasn’t been fairly so lengthy for Joe Musgrove. But he is again this weekend, too.
And — you understand what? — it is a good factor for the Padres that they’re going to be including two of their finest gamers to their roster. Because all of the sudden this weekend’s sequence towards the D-backs looks like a giant one.
OK, OK, it is April. Still, the Padres have struggled out of the gate, and so they additionally struggled to deal with the Arizona working sport when the 2 squared off at Petco Park earlier this season. The upstart D-backs are off to a quick begin and at the moment sit in first place within the NL West. They’ll be seeking to make an announcement of their very own.
“It’s going to be a lot more intense series against Arizona this year, especially with their ability to run and some of their guys finding form as hitters,” stated Musgrove. “It’s definitely a different team than it was last year. So it’s going to be an exciting series, especially with me and Tati coming back.”
Good timing certainly. Tatis is slated to return from his 80-game PED suspension on Thursday evening, with the San Diego offense having scored simply two runs previously 4 video games.
The Padres are adamant that Tatis’ return will not remedy every part that ails the offense. But it definitely cannot harm.
“Just his name, man,” stated Xander Bogaerts. “His name, his presence — that goes a long way. … He could do a lot of different stuff. He’s dynamic.”
Bogaerts, who has spent a part of the primary few weeks hitting leadoff, will shift to the cleanup spot on a extra everlasting foundation.
Meanwhile, Juan Soto and Manny Machado have begun to present indicators of life on the plate within the 2 and three spots. They is perhaps poised for a breakout. If so, that’ll be fairly a quartet on the prime of the Padres’ lineup — collectively in a regular-season sport for the very first time.
“We’re more than excited to see him back,” Soto stated. “He’s amazing. He’s going to bring a lot of energy for us and a lot of stuff that we need.”
As for Musgrove, his return is slated for Saturday. He fractured his left massive toe in February and was looking forward to a sooner return earlier than he endured a minor setback throughout his first rehab begin.
After a 11th of September begin to the season, the Padres have been searching for a spark. They’ll get a few them this weekend — towards an NL West rival, no much less.
“It doesn’t matter who we play,” said Machado. “Just having them back in the lineup is going to be huge for the team, huge for the organization. It’s been a long time coming.”
