Tag: Fernando Tatis Jr.

The 20 top selling MLB jerseys in 2023

Which player topped the list of MLB jersey sales in 2023?

When the calendar flips to October, it means one thing for many sports fans: playoff baseball.

Major League Baseball’s postseason is in full swing. It’s once again time for history to be written on the diamond and showcase the game’s biggest stars shining their brightest.

At the end of every regular season, the MLB releases the top-selling jerseys from that season.

Unsurprisingly, the list contains plenty of playoff contenders, a multitude of MVP candidates and simply some of the best baseball players on the planet

Check out the full list below, and grab a jersey to support your favorite player as the remaining lucky few march on towards the 2023 World Series.

San Diego Padres’ Fernando Tatis Jr. to honor Kobe Bryant vs. Dodgers

The Padres’ Fernando Tatis Jr. may be looking to beat L.A. when he plays the Dodgers on Tuesday, but he will also honor Kobe Bryant.

The Los Angeles Dodgers have been slumping and losing momentum in September, but they will look to get back on track when they continue a three-game set versus the San Diego Padres at home on Tuesday.

The Padres, led by former All-Star Fernando Tatis Jr., are under .500 and are unlikely to make the playoffs this season. Still, they would love to help spoil the Dodgers’ hopes of winning another World Series.

Tatis, however, is showing his respect for another Los Angeles team during the series at Dodger Stadium. He is wearing an awesome set of Air Jordan-style Kobe Bryant cleats in purple and gold that have thousands of crystals on them (h/t Lakers Daily).

The Dodgers recently honored the late Bryant and the Lakers organization during “Lakers Night” on Sept. 1. The rest of the Bryant clan was there, and it was presented with a $100,000 check by Dodgers president Stan Kasten to be put toward the Mamba and Mambacita Foundation.

The foundation, according to its website, is “a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating positive impact for underserved athletes and boys and girls in sports.”

Fernando Tatis Jr. practically jogged on his way to the easiest steal of home ever

This was too easy.

Stealing home is always thrilling, whether it’s due to an amazing slide to avoid a tag or a pitcher not checking on the runner at third enough.

The latter appears to be the issue with what we saw on Wednesday night with Fernando Tatis Jr.’s steal of home, one of the easiest swipes of the bag you’ll ever see.

Cionel Perez was on the mound for the Baltimore Orioles, and Tatis was on third in the seventh inning with two outs. Perez didn’t really look Tatis’s way, and the outfielder knew it. You’ll see him kind of start jogging before turning on the jets and make it home before Perez even knew what was happening.

WOW. Here’s a take from Tatis’ San Diego Padres teammate Blake Snell:

 

Fernando Tatis Jr. playfully encouraged Phillies fans to get louder during their ‘steroids!’ chant

He’s not bothered by the heckling.

San Diego Padres outfielder Fernando Tatis Jr. expects to get heckled at every away game this season. It was inevitable after he tested positive for the performance-enhancing drug, Clostebol, last season and served an 80-game suspension.

But if Phillies fans wanted to get in Tatis’ head, they should have worked on their material. He seemed to enjoy the heckling.

During a video review in Sunday’s game between the Padres and Phillies, Tatis took a seat in right field at Citizens Bank Park, and that was when the Phillies fans let Tatis hear it with a “steroids!” chant. Rather than ignoring the chant or reacting in a negative way, Tatis had some fun with the heckling.

Video hit TikTok this weekend that showed Tatis playing the role of conductor to the chants and eventually urging the Phillies fans to get louder with the heckles.

By that point, Tatis had probably heard the chant in all 39 away games he’s played in. So why not go along with it? It’s going to follow him the rest of the season after all.

The chants stopped when the replay review ended, and the Phillies went on to win in 12 innings.

MLB fans couldn’t believe that a motorcycle injury ad appeared during Fernando Tatis Jr.’s at-bat

That cannot be a coincidence. RIGHT?!

The past couple years have been so tumultuous for San Diego Padres star Fernando Tatis Jr. that it’s sometimes difficult to keep track of all the incidents that have kept him away from baseball.

Before Tatis Jr. was suspended 80 games last year for the performance-enhancing drug, Clostebol, he was busy recovering from a fractured wrist that he suffered in a December 2021 motorcycle crash. Well, he’s back from suspension now, and someone at Bally Sports San Diego appeared to have the most appropriate marketing campaign ready to go.

During Tatis’ third-inning at-bat against the Twins on Thursday, an ad for Law Tigers about motorcycle injuries popped up over the Bally Sports scorebug.

I mean, this was just incredible timing. It might have been a coincidence, but it’s difficult to believe that the Padres’ own broadcast would lack the awareness about Tatis’ motorcycle injury.

A company wants its ads to be relevant, and it doesn’t get much more relevant than displaying a motorcycle injury ad during a Tatis at-bat. Law Tigers were getting their money’s worth there — that’s for sure.

Still, MLB fans couldn’t believe that the Padres’ own broadcast did Tatis like that.

Eduardo Perez apologizes after unintentional jab at Fernando Tatis Jr. on Sunday Night Baseball

He knows “That’s what a superstar looks like, Nando” wasn’t great.

ESPN’s Eduardo Perez may not have known it at the time while broadcasting a San Diego Padres and Los Angeles Dodges tilt on Sunday Night Baseball, but there were a bunch of fans unhappy with something he said.

Mookie Betts had just hit a big home run in what would be a Dodgers win, and as ESPN cameras showed Fernandro Tatis Jr. looking bummed, Perez declared, “That’s what a superstar looks like, Nando.”

Ouch. What did he mean by that? Well, on Monday, he meant to just say that Betts was what a superstar looked like. But because the cameras focused on Tatis Jr., he threw in the outfielder’s name. He cringed right away, so he gets it.

He said he would apologize to Tatis Jr. despite his intentions, which feels right here.

Minor leaguer pitcher rips ‘cheater’ Fernando Tatis after giving up a monster home run

This minor leaguer made perfectly clear his feelings about Fernando Tatis.

San Diego Padres star Fernando Tatis Jr. started his rehab assignment this week as he officially begins his return from an 80-game suspension for a positive PED test.

The second game of that stint with Triple-A El Paso was Wednesday, and Tatis looked to be in top form, launching an absolute bomb off pitcher Kade McClure of the San Francisco Giants affiliate in Sacramento. But don’t think McClure considered it some sort of badge of honor.

The 27-year-old made clear his feelings about Tatis on Twitter, describing the moment as “cheater hits a homerun on rehab assignment during a steroid suspension.”

Here’s a look at the home run:

And here’s McClure’s response:

Uhhhh, yeah, sure. I guess that’s an accurate description.

It also sounds a little salty for an older player who’s still trying to reach a level of the sport Tatis has been and succeeded.

Judging by the replies, that tweet probably would have been better left in the drafts.

Padres star Fernando Tatis Jr. was suspended 80 games for performance-enhancing drugs and MLB fans were stunned

Tatis Jr. will also miss the playoffs.

A bombshell dropped in MLB on Friday evening as ESPN‘s Jeff Passan reported Padres’ star Fernando Tatis Jr. is suspended 80 games for using performance-enhancing drugs effective immediately.

Tatis Jr.’s suspension will cover the remainder of the 2022 MLB season, including any potential playoff games. With just about 50 games left this year, the remainder of Tatis Jr’s suspension will roll over into San Diego’s 2023 campaign. Tatis Jr. had been working his way back from a broken wrist and was on the verge of returning soon before news of his suspension was made official.

The Padres’ organization issued a strong rebuke upon learning of Tatis Jr’s positive test:

Tatis Jr. issued his own statement through the MLBPA:

Needless to say, this is understandably a huge shift for the Padres and Tatis Jr. across the board. Especially as the franchise sought its first-ever championship.

On Monday, August 2, after swinging a historic trade for Juan Soto, San Diego’s World Series odds with Tipico Sportsbook eventually settled at a robust +1300. Though, those numbers likely factored in the return of Tatis Jr. from injury to be ready for the postseason.

After news of Tatis Jr’s suspension was made official on Friday, the Padres’ consensus odds dropped all the way to +1800. San Diego still has a strong squad, but that is a precipitous dip that certainly accounts for the loss of arguably their best player for the foreseeable future.

Fernando Tatis Jr. wiped out playing soccer before a Padres game and MLB fans weren’t happy

He was already on the 60-day IL for a broken wrist.

The San Diego Padres signed star shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. to a $340 million contract extension last year, so you’d think that the team would have a talk with him about avoiding risky activities. It sure doesn’t look like it, though.

Tatis started the season on the 60-day IL after sustaining a broken left wrist in a reported motorcycle crash in the Dominican Republic. Tatis had surgery on that wrist and is expected to miss at least three months with his earliest return slated for June.

With all that in mind, the Padres really aren’t going to like how their injured superstar warmed up before Sunday’s game against the Atlanta Braves.

Max Muncy’s reaction perfectly summed up Fernando Tatis Jr. hitting a homer out of Dodger Stadium

LOL

Fun fact: Before Thursday night, a baseball had been hit out of Dodgers Stadium four times.

Now, Fernando Tatis Jr. sent the fifth ball out of the Los Angeles Dodgers home in the San Diego Padres’ loss.

The superstar shortstop joined Mark McGwire, Mike Piazza and Willie Stargel (who did it twice!) with the feat thanks to a 467-foot blast that went off the top of a pavilion and out.

So how do you sum up that dinger? Let’s go to Dodgers infielder Max Muncy, who had the perfect reaction of awe and disbelief at the same time.

But first … the home run!