Fernando Tatis Jr. will make his first career start at second base Saturday night against the Colorado Rockies, a move the San Diego Padres had been preparing for for weeks while continuing their pattern of resting veteran position players. Xander Bogaerts is sitting out, Jake Cronenworth will move to shortstop and Nick Castellanos will start in right field.
Manager Craig Stammen said the club had been planning the switch for a while and wanted to give Tatis a look at a position he once played in the minors. He said the Padres viewed Tatis as the best and most entertaining option at second base, even as the team keeps working through periodic rest days for Manny Machado, Bogaerts and Cronenworth.
The move is not entirely unfamiliar to Tatis. He made 10 starts at second base early in his minor-league career and logged a late-game appearance there in September 2023, when he also won Gold Glove and Platinum Glove awards. Stammen raised the idea of occasional returns to second base after taking over as manager during the offseason, and Tatis began drilling daily last month in case the opportunity became real.
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Tatis, who began his career as a shortstop, has not played that position since his 2023 return from multiple arm surgeries and a PED suspension. He said of the second-base experiment, “I didn’t take it that serious. But here we are.” He added that he can play whatever is needed and said he is “just here to play baseball and be a good baseball player,” while also calling it a challenge he is looking forward to embracing.
The timing carries extra weight because Tatis has opened with a.519 OPS through 14 games, and Stammen suggested that spending more time focusing on second base could free him up at the plate. The manager also said the club expects Tatis to remain its primary right fielder, leaving how often he appears at second base unresolved for now. “We have a shortstop who is going to be here for a long time,” Stammen said, adding that he is not particularly worried about Tatis making the transition.
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For the Padres, the assignment is less a permanent position change than another way to manage a roster built around flexible movement and routine rest. For Tatis, it is a chance to show that even after surgeries, a suspension and years in right field, he can still handle a different job when the Padres need it.
