Fernando Tatis Jr. is back to looking like perhaps the most electrifying player in baseball.

It’s been a long road back for Fernando Tatis Jr. After the 2021 season, it seemed he was merely approaching the peak of his powers. He had capped off a stellar season with an NL-leading 42 home runs, 6.6 WAR, and finished third in the NL MVP race. Only names like Juan Soto and Bryce Harper finished ahead.

Let’s not forget that he did that at 22 years old, an age when most players are still trying to fight their way through the minors to The Show.

Then, disaster struck. His disastrous 2022 is well-documented. We don’t need to fully rehash it. From the wrist injury(ies), the shoulder surgery saga, to the devastating news of his PED suspension, 2022 could not have been worse for the Padres star.

Things certainly could’ve gone sideways or even belly-up for Tatis and his baseball career to that point. To his credit, he and the Padres worked hard to recover from that brutal stretch in his career, which came just one season after signing an earth-shaking $340 million, 14-year contract.

Things picked up slowly in 2023. He set a career high with 141 games played, but clearly, he was not himself. He had been away from baseball for over a year and was trying to find his sea legs. Still, most big leaguers would give up a lot to have his “still finding my sea legs” season of 25 homers, .770 OPS, and 5.2 WAR on his way to winning a Gold Glove and Platinum Glove at a brand new position in right field.

Many thought his 2024 meant he would return to his MVP self after a full season got under his belt. Unfortunately, his campaign was marred by a leg injury that turned out to be a stress reaction in his right femur. Essentially, he was playing through a broken femur for part of the season, which is unfathomable.

He missed 60 games and still turned in solid numbers. With 21 homers, a .276 average, .833 OPS, 131 OPS+, and 2.6 WAR, and an All-Star selection to boot. Indeed, most major leaguers would love such a season.

Now, he is back on two health legs. He had one of his only “normal” offseasons of his career.

Now? He looks like he’s back to his pre-2022 form, and perhaps *gulp*, better. Before we even dive into his offensive numbers, how about his defense?

Fernando Tatis Jr. closes out the game with an incredible catch! pic.twitter.com/cPnXC256hK

— MLB (@MLB) April 13, 2025

After a stellar night against the Cubs on Monday, in which he swatted two homers, he now is tied for the MLB lead with six dingers. It’s not just the majestic home runs, which are a sight to behold all on their own. It’s his approach at the plate. His mentality. Tatis appears all grown up.

His 12.9 percent strikeout rate would be the lowest by far in his MLB career (previously, it’s 21.9%). He is pulling the ball the most and making the hardest contact (41.5%) since his stellar 2021 campaign.

His Baseball Savant page is redder than that wedding from Game of Thrones (the more red, the closer to 100th percentile he is).

Minimum of 40 batted balls, only Pete Alonso has more barrels per plate appearance than Tatis. He is finding the most barrels than his previous two seasons. With a minimum of 70 plate appearances, only Aaron Judge has a higher than his 207 wRC+. He is one of just five players in Major League Baseball with at least a 1.100 OPS.

What sticks out most is his sprint speed. Last year, he still checked in at 28.4 feet per second, which was in the 77th percentile. So far, in 2025, he’s up to 29.2 f/s. That is 96th percentile. He already has six stolen bases this year, which is more than half of what he had all of last season.

He is currently on pace for 57 home runs and 57 stolen bases.

Obviously, it is extremely early in the season to be talking about an MVP season in the making. Certainly, Shohei Ohtani, Bryce Harper, Mookie Betts, and others will have something to say about that in the NL.

Along with his MLB-high six homers, he already has 1.5 WAR, leading the entire sport. He is currently on pace for 14.3 WAR, which would exceed the very best seasons of Babe Ruth‘s or Barry Bonds‘ careers.

Given his hard contact rate, sprint speed, and plate discipline are all trending among the best of his entire career through 16 games so far, it’s safe to say he’s well on his way to maybe his best season ever.

Nick Lee

Native of Escondido, CA. Lived in San Diego area for 20 years. Padres fan since childhood (mid-90s). I have been writing since 2014. I currently live near Seattle, WA and am married to a Seattle sports girl. I wore #19 on my high school baseball team for Tony Gwynn. I am a stats and sports history nerd. I attended BYU on the Idaho campus. I also love Star Wars.