Suspended San Diego Padres shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. apologized for his recent positive test for a performance-enhancing substance and said he failed the franchise during his first public media session since being hit with the 80-game ban on Aug. 12.
Tatis was remorseful and terse while facing reporters with general manager A.J. Preller to his left hours before the Padres hosted the Cleveland Guardians on Tuesday night.
“I’m truly sorry. I’m really sorry,” Tatis said. “I have let so many people down. I have lost so much love from people. I have failed.
“I failed the front office, the San Diego Padres, (owner) Peter Seidler, A.J. Preller. I have failed the fans of this city, I have failed my country, I have failed my family, parents. I’m really sorry for my mistakes.
“I have seen how my dreams have turned into my worst nightmares. … There is no one else to blame but myself.”
Tatis also said he will undergo surgery on his left shoulder during the suspension. Part of the reason why he and the team were at odds was due to him declining to go under the knife following last season.
Making matters worse was the December motorcycle accident in the Dominican Republic. Tatis allegedly broke his left wrist in the incident but the Padres were unaware of the break until he reported to spring training in March.
Tatis, 23, underwent surgery on his broken left wrist in March and hasn’t played this season.
He said Tuesday that he should not have gotten on the motorcycle.
When Tatis’ suspension was announced by Major League Baseball, Clostebol was identified as the illegal substance. Tatis said he had been dealing with ringworm and inadvertently used a banned substance.
Tatis also spoke to the team Tuesday, and star third baseman Manny Machado said he thinks Tatis will learn from his mistakes.
“Ultimately, at the end of the day, we’re all human beings and we all make mistakes,” Machado told repoters. “It just (stinks) that he was in a hard situation, it’s all over the world. … We all forgive and we all move forward and try to learn from those mistakes.”
Tatis played in a career-high 130 games in 2021, his third major league season, and led the National League with 42 home runs. He batted .282 with 97 RBIs and 25 steals and was third in National League MVP voting.
In 273 career games, Tatis has a .292 batting average with 81 home runs and 195 RBIs. He was a first-time All-Star in 2021 after finishing fourth in NL MVP voting during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, and he signed a 14-year, $330 million contract with the Padres during spring training last year.
–Field Level Media
