The extended struggle has come to an end for San Diego.
Fernando Tatis Jr. has launched his first home run of the season.
The 27-year-old star player, who topped the National League with 42 homers in 2021 and brings 152 career long balls into this campaign, broke his widely-discussed power outage with a solo blast during the fifth frame of San Diego’s 9-4 defeat against the Nationals in Washington on Saturday.
The round-tripper, delivered against a 90 mph heater from Nationals southpaw Forster Griffin, arrived during Tatis’ 208th trip to the plate and 239th overall plate appearance in 2026. The contest marked San Diego’s 57th outing of the current campaign.
Upon making contact, Tatis flipped his lumber during his swing’s completion and watched the 451-foot rocket sail into left field at Nationals Park. The blast provided San Diego with a temporary 3-1 advantage before Washington plated six runs during the seventh frame.
“I just knew right away,” Tatis shared with media members following the contest. “About (expletive) time.”
Tatis’ previous home run occurred on Sept. 27 of last season. The long ball now makes Tampa Bay speedster Chandler Simpson the player holding the most plate appearances (232) without a homer this year.
