Aug 19, 2025; San Diego, California, USA; San Diego Padres right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr. (23) dodges a pitch during the third inning against the San Francisco Giants at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Denis Poroy-Imagn Images Denis Poroy-Imagn Images

Padres' Fernando Tatis Jr Opens Up on Dealing With Death Threats

Originally posted on San Diego Padres on SI
By Nelson Espinal | Last updated Aug 23, 2025 2:06 PM ET

San Diego Padres right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr. opened up about the death threats that he has faced regarding his performance.

As sports betting has been become legal and regulated across various states in America, there has also been an influx in hate comments aimed towards players who do not perform.

People can bet on the result of a game, or player props, which has people gamble on how many hits, home runs, or strikeouts a player gets.

The rise in sports gambling has coincided with social media becoming widely adopted by the masses, including players who all have accounts used for marketing and brand management.

Tatis Jr., as one of the faces of MLB, gets plenty of attention and action on the betting market, and while he typically delivers at the plate, he does get on the wrong end of some viewers.

Annie Heilbrunn of the San Diego Union-Tribune did a story on Padres players who have been the victims of hateful comments due to sports betting, and Tatis gave insight into what kind of comments he gets.

“You really don’t try to pay attention to it,” Tatis told Helibrunn.

“But at the same time, in the back of your head, you’re like, ‘Wow. People are really wishing death to yourself and to your family.’ And it’s pretty (messed) up. It’s not fun. It’s not fun at all.

“To me, it really started happening after 2020. It’s constant. People just wishing us death to ourselves, to our family. This is the new thing, I guess.

“It’s part of the new baseball era … These are not real fans, definitely. Or people that generally care for you. So you just try to disappear them from your life.

“I wish they can come and say it to my face to see if we will have the same result.”

This season, Tatis is hitting .268/.372/.435 as one of the most well-rounded players in baseball, who fields at a high level and hits the ball well.

He has a 130 wRC+ with a career high 13.2 percent walk rate and career low 18.1 strikeout rate.

Tatis has not left much room for criticism this season, yet he has still been receiving hateful comments and threats, highlighting the extent of the problem.

No matter how well players perform, a poor performance can leave them receiving backlash online, some of which crosses the linee from fandom to danger.