Fernando Tatis Jr. ignited a dominant shutout with a lead-off blast, proving his late-season power surge has transformed San Diego into the postseason’s most dangerous hurricane.
Game 1 is in the books between the San Diego Padres and the Chicago Cubs, going down as a dominant 8-0 victory for the Padres. It was the perfect statement for the Friars in their first postseason game, as they continue to put the league on notice as the sport's hottest team.
Pretty much everything went right for San Diego, with Michael King pitching a scoreless seven-inning outing and the offense putting up 13 hits. What really set the tone, however, was the Padres’ biggest star.
It was a strange season for Fernando Tatis Jr. He started the year as a different player – one without the power that we’d become accustomed to seeing from his bat. Not sending his first home run over the wall until the end of May, many were worried the slugging version of Tatis Jr. was behind us.
A scorching second half put those concerns to rest, however, as Tatis Jr. finished the year with 25 home runs, 17 of which came in just the final two months of the year. His OPS steadily climbed throughout the season, with his highest number coming in September at 1.066. Heading into the postseason, Tatis Jr. was once again one of baseball’s very best, and he proved it last night.
He stepped up to the plate to lead things off for San Diego, and on the first pitch he saw, he smashed one just over the glove of Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong. Within one pitch, Tatis Jr. handed a lead to the Padres.
Fans in Petco Park immediately went crazy, and just like that, the tone was set for the rest of the ballgame. On the scoreboard, it’s just one run, but Tatis Jr.’s one swing brought an unwelcome storm over the Cubs – one that they never stood a chance of surviving. After Tatis Jr. rattled Cubs pitcher Matthew Boyd with that first pitch, the lefty never recovered. He allowed a second home run to Manny Machado before the first inning’s end.
We knew Tatis Jr. was only getting better as the postseason neared, but the true level of destruction El Niño can cause in the fall months needs to be highlighted. The 27-year-old is a proven postseason performer, and that’s clearly no different this time around.
His career .333/.432/.746 slash line with a ridiculous 1.178 OPS in 74 career postseason appearances puts into perspective just how much of a playoff riser Tatis Jr. is. That number is the third-highest in the history of the MLB among players with at least 70 plate appearances. Keep in mind, those numbers include an unusual Wild Card series last year in which he only recorded one hit as most of the Padres’ offense as a whole dried up.
Tatis Jr.’s bat has returned in a big way this time around, however, recording two hits, one walk, and scoring three times in Game 1 last night. The production itself is more than enough to significantly boost the Padres' odds, but when he’s on his game, the entire roster feeds off of it.
That’s exactly what happened last night. Once Tatis Jr. set the tone, there was never any real chance the Cubs were going to stop the hurricane rolling through town. I wouldn't be surprised if the storm still hasn't cleared over Petco Park before tonight’s Game 2 matchup.
