Fernando Tatis Jr. leaves game with possible shoulder injury

Padres shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. left Saturday night’s game in the top of the fifth inning after appearing to hurt his shoulder.  According to Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune (Twitter link), Tatis seemed “to jar his left shoulder diving for a ball” off the bat of Reds outfielder Tyler Naquin.  Tatis left the field after a visit from the team trainer.

More will be known after the game, although any sort of shoulder problem is of particular concern considering that Tatis is already playing with a slight labrum tear in that same left shoulder. Tatis suffered the tear while taking a big swing during an at-bat early in April, although what seemed like a very serious injury at the time resulted in only a minimal 10-day stint on the injured list.

It could be that the Padres were simply being as cautious as possible in removing Tatis at the first sign of any shoulder discomfort, and this current issue might not require another IL visit at all for the star shortstop. However, any sort of absence for Tatis would be a blow to San Diego considering the fantastic numbers (.285/.364/.675 with 22 home runs) that he has posted over 231 plate appearances this season. Tatis entered Saturday as the NL leader in homers, RBI (50), and OPS, while his .677 slugging percentage was leading all MLB hitters.