The San Diego Padres have posted an electric playoff run so far. Their series against the Los Angeles Dodgers has everything — grand slams, elite pitching, home run robberies, rivalry spats, and much more.
But Fernando Tatís Jr.'s performance, in particular, has been incredible to watch. His teammate, former Boston Red Sox Xander Bogaerts, agrees. He compared Tatís to one of the most clutch playoff performers of all time.
“David did it a long time,” Bogaerts said. “But for how young he is, you don’t see many people doing what he’s doing right now. He’s really putting us on his back right now. It’s special to see.”
Tatís' offense has been a huge part of San Diego's success. He's slashing .500/.577/1.182 through six postseason games, with two doubles, four homers and seven RBI in that time.
Xander Bogaerts compares Fernando Tatís Jr. to Red Sox legend and playoff hero David Ortiz
FERNANDO. TATIS. JR. 🤩 #NLDS pic.twitter.com/DbwB6Q0TPJ
— MLB (@MLB) October 9, 2024
Tatís has stunned spectators in the postseason before. He posted a .455/.571/1.091 slash line in the 2020 Wild Card series, but fell off when his squad reached the NLDS. He shows no signs of slowing down this time.
Tatís still has a lot of work to do before he can be compared to Ortiz with any level of sincerity, though. Big Papi slashed .289/.404/.543 with a .947 OPS over 85 playoff games in his career. He was awarded ALCS MVP for his heroics in 2004 and World Series MVP in 2013, when he slashed .688/.760/1.188 with an incredible 1.948 OPS against the Cardinals.
If Tatís' outstanding offense continues throughout the postseason, his numbers could rival Ortiz's 2013 stats. The Padres will have to make it through the Dodgers and the NLCS for that to come true, but they're just one more win away from a date with the Mets or Phillies.