SAN DIEGO -- Manny Machado and Fernando Tatis Jr. made their Padres debuts on the very same day in March 2019.
Seven and a half years later, they’re now 1-2 on the franchise’s all-time home-run leaderboard.
With his solo home run in the bottom of the fourth inning in the Padres 11-2 win over the Brewers on Tuesday night at Petco Park, Tatis passed Nate Colbert for sole possession of second place on the Padres’ all-time list. It was the 164th of his career. Only Machado (217) has more with San Diego.
“It’s definitely special,” Tatis said Sunday night after tying the record. “It’s so rewarding. This game is so tough. So many ups and downs. But being able to perform in front of this beautiful city, it’s what you dream of as a kid.”
Tatis, of course, spent the first two months of the season searching for his power. But he’s all the way back now. He’s now gone deep four times in the last seven games. Tatis didn’t notch his first home run until May 30. He’s suddenly all the way up to 12 this season.
As of his fourth-inning homer, he was hitting .281 with a .772 OPS. He’s been a driving force behind the Padres’ offensive resurgence.
In the meantime, he’s making club history. Colbert’s record stood for 55 years. Machado broke it on September 10, 2024, and has continued adding on. Now, Tatis is in second place. For a franchise that spent the first five decades of its existence struggling to hold on to superstars, it’s a sign of the times.
This era of Padres baseball is just different. And these two have been at the forefront of that turnaround.
“That’s pretty awesome,” Tatis said of sitting 1-2 with Machado. “That’s why we came here. That’s why he came here, with that first deal he got, the 10 years. And me also, signing for those 14 years. That’s what we expect to be doing.”