Fernando Tatis Jr. of the San Diego Padres will play for the Estrellas Orientales in LIDOM this winter. (Photo by Matt Thomas/San Diego Padres/Getty Images)
Fernando Tatis Jr. will play with Estrellas Orientales in LIDOM and will be allowed to play 20 games for them.
Fernando Tatis Sr. manages Estrellas Orientales, and said Tatis Jr. will play shortstop this winter starting November 22, Hector Gomez of Dominican radio station Z101 reported.
The older Tatis is a former big leaguer, and the only Major League Baseball player to hit two grand slams in one inning. He played 11 seasons in the Major Leagues, debuting in 1997 with the Texas Rangers and ending his career with the New York Mets in 2010.
Fernando Tatis Jr. had a breakout season in right field, winning the Gold Glove with the San Diego Padres. Tatis Jr. threw out 12 runners and saved 18 runs in 139 games in the outfield last season. He came up as a shortstop and had his first outfield action in 2021, playing 24 games on the grass. He played 242 games at shortstop from 2019-21.
He missed the 2022 season due to suspension for performance enhancing drugs and injury. Last season, Tatis Jr. hit 25 home runs, 78 RBI, and 29 stolen bases, with an OPS of .770. Tatis Jr. has one All-Star appearance and has two Silver Sluggers in his MLB career. His career numbers are 106 home runs, 273 RBI, 81 stolen bases, and an OPS of .896.
Tatis Jr. last played for Estrellas Orientals in 2019. He hit three home runs and drove in eight runs in 80 at-bats. That was his only action in LIDOM. Tatis Jr. is expected to play for Estrellas Orientales in the first week of December.
De La Cruz, Mauricio Coming to Licey – On November 7, the General Manager of the Tigres del Licey, Audo Vicente, said that Elly de La Cruz will join the club in the first week of December.
The Cincinnati Reds shortstop also played for the Tigres del Licey in LIDOM last winter. In 24 games, Cruz hit one home run, drove in 14 runs, and stole nine bases for Licey. De La Cruz was an MLB rookie this past season and broke a record for the fastest throw by an infielder with a 99.8 mph rocket to throw out a runner against the Milwaukee Brewers on July 20. Cruz hit 13 home runs in 388 at-bats and stole 35 bases, posting an OPS of .710.
Vicente also announced that New York Mets infielder Ronny Mauricio will rejoin the Tigres del Licey in the upcoming days. Mauricio was named the LIDOM MVP last winter, and has played three winters for the Tigres del Licey. He had five home runs, 31 RBI, 10 stolen bases, and an OPS of .803. Last season he made his MLB debut with the Mets. He had two home runs, nine RBI, and seven stolen bases in 101 at-bats for the Mets. Last season he had 23 home runs and an OPS of .852, with the Mets Triple-A affiliate the Syracuse Mets.
Notable Performances – Right-handed pitcher Paolo Espino of the Toros del Este leads LIDOM with an ERA of 0.94 and 28 strikeouts in 28.2 innings. Espino was drafted by the Cleveland Indians in the 2006 MLB draft, but didn’t make his MLB debut until 2017 with the Milwaukee Brewers. He’s spent most of his five-year MLB career with the Washington Nationals and made three appearances with the Nationals last season. He has pitched 257 MLB innings with an ERA of 5.01.