ESPN analyst offers interesting commentary on Fernando Tatis Jr.

“Playing shortstop, you’re in the play, you’re the captain of that infield, that’s the elite position,” Perez said. “He was an elite player with serious numbers at shortstop. When he signed that major deal, it’s because he was a shortstop, not a right fielder. Now he’s had to learn a new position. Not only that, he’s also not leading off, and I think he identified with being that guy, the leadoff, the spark plug. Those two toys, shortstop and leadoff, have been taken away from him.”

Defensively, Tatis has been fine in right field, and has flashed one of the best arms in the sport. However, he is hitting a fairly modest .262 with 19 home runs in 92 games. Those are not bad numbers, but considering Tatis hit .293 in his first three MLB seasons with 42 home runs in 2021, they represent a step down.

Of course, Tatis missed 2022 because of injuries and off-field matters that seemed to frustrate the Padres organization. That could certainly impact a player’s confidence as well.