Fernando Tatis Jr. is finally on the board. The San Diego Padres star slugged his first home run of 2026 on Saturday afternoon at Nationals Park.
Washington Nationals lefty Foster Griffin caught too much of the plate with a 91 mph fastball, and Tatis launched it 451 feet to left field. It was no cheap shot — he crushed the ball.
Tatis knew it as soon as he hit it and raised his arms as he began to leave the batter's box. It was not so much a celebration as it was a sigh of relief. The drought had to be weighing on him.
He slugged his longest home run since a 467-footer on Sept. 30, 2021.
Why Left Field Matters
It is no coincidence that Tatis hit his first home run to left field. Like most players, his power plays best when he pulls the ball, and Tatis has not pulled the ball nearly enough this year.
He is pulling the ball in the air only 6.9% of the time this season. That is the third-lowest rate among qualified hitters and well below the league average of 16.8%.
It's hard to hit homers while pulling the ball that rarely.
The Hard-Hit Reality
Tatis ranks among the MLB leaders in hard-hit rate and 90th percentile exit velocity, which is a more accurate measure of a player's ability to drive the baseball than regular average exit velocity.
Despite the lack of homers, Tatis has been hitting the ball veryhard this year. He's just going the other way too often. Saturday shows why he needs to pull the ball more.
Coming into Saturday, Tatis had the most plate appearances without a home run this season, and by far the most among players who can be considered power hitters. His first homer came in his 239th plate appearance.
Players Without Homers This Season
With Tatis on the board, here are the players with the most plate appearances without a homer this year:
- Chandler Simpson, Rays: 227
- Nick Gonzales, Pirates: 207
- Nasim Nuñez, Nationals: 196
- Luis Rengifo, Brewers: 170
- Colt Keith, Tigers: 168
Pirates outfielder Jake Mangum also hit his first homer of the season Saturday. He came into the day with 109 plate appearances.
Career Trajectory
Tatis, 27, took a .268/.345/.307 batting line into Saturday's game. He hit .266 with a .344 on-base percentage from 2022-25, so those numbers are right where they belong, but his slugging ability had evaporated.
Tatis averaged 24 homers a year and 29 homers per 162 games from 2022-25. He got his first homer of 2026 on May 30.