MLB announced baseball’s annual Gold Glove Awards today, and San Diego Padres right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr. was the Padres lone finalist and recipient, earning his second Gold Glove at the position. The award represents some welcome good news for Tatis, who struggled offensively during the Padres’ loss to the Chicago Cubs in the wild-card round of the NL playoffs.
Tatis was outstanding defensively, however, as outlined by AJ Cassavell of MLB com. He finished the season with 15 defensive runs saved, tying him with center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong of the Chicago Cubs for best among NL outfielders. Tatis was also worth nine outs above average, according to another advance e metric.
As excellent as the metrics were, Tatis also passed the eye test this season. He displayed his full range of skills this year, with his remarkable arm strength and outstanding arm strength foremost among them, according to Cassavell, who cited a stretch of 27 games at Petco Park from July through September when Tatis robbed opposing hitters of four home runs.
This year was also a bounce-back season for Tatis defensively. He had to deal with the effects of a stress reaction in his right leg throughout the summer of 2024, which caused a drop-off in his defensive performance back in 2023. Tatis won the Platinum Glove Award as the NL’s top defender overall that year.
Tatis is also a candidate for this year’s Platinum Glove Award, and he’ll compete with Crow-Armstrong and left fielder Ian Happ of the Cubs for that honor, with the winner to be named on Friday.
Earning a second Gold Glove also vaults Tatis into the ranks of the Padres' best outfielders of all time. He joins the likes of Tony Gwynn, Steve Finley, Dave Winfield and Trent Grisham as Padres outfielders who have won more than a single Gold Glove, and Tatis also has a chance to catch Gwynn as the all-time team leader. Gwynn won a total of five Gold Glove Awards from 1986-87 and 1998-1991.
Tatis’s defensive skills are especially valuable at Petco Park, which is one of the most spacious parks in baseball. Playing right field at Petco comes with a high degree of difficulty, and adding in the defensive skills of athletic young centerfielder Jackson Merrill gives the Padres a leg up on fielding one of the best defensive outfields in baseball. Left fielder Ramon Laureano has one of the best arms in baseball as well, but his limited range could have GM A.J. Preller searching for new options, platoon or otherwise, assuming Preller’s contract is extended as expected.