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Fernando Tatis Jr.<\/strong> 2022 has been a completely dismal year. He missed the first half of the year after undergoing surgery in March to repair a broken left wrist he sustained in an off-season motorcycle accident, and is gearing up to return. Just then, he received an 80-game performance-enhancing drug suspension.<\/p>\n Despite two setbacks\u2014shoulder surgery in September and follow-up wrist surgery in October\u2014the 24-year-old seems to be in a good place physically and mentally for the opener. It’s getting closer.<\/p>\n “I’m really excited,”<\/em> Tatis told Kevin Acey and Annie Heilbran of the San Diego Union-Tribune. “I think it’s going to be a much more emotional year and I’m definitely looking forward to it. \u2026 I feel like if I was on the field it would have been a different story. It was the first time that I felt that I was separated from them.It really hurt my heart.I have always been successful in this field but this is the first time I really failed.And I really felt it.\u2026 I know what people are talking about there and what people are talking about in the field.It’s up to me \u2014 how I approach it , how I take it, and whether I reply or not is up to me.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Tatis is looking forward to a full-on spring training and expects to be activated as soon as he is eligible to return from his PED suspension on April 20th. A training program run by former Marines in the San Diego area.Tatis is in these workouts Joe Musgrove<\/strong>he was one of the more vocal critics in the Padres’ own clubhouse when news of the suspension was first announced.<\/p>\n “He has to face things he has never faced before or doesn’t want to face.”<\/em> Musgrove spoke of Tatis. “But he handles it really well. He’s been around Petco[Park]every day and the work ethic he puts in is ready. Being is a lot to take on, which is why he hasn’t done a lot in the past, and now it seems like you’re starting to see him open up a little more. I feel<\/em><\/p>\n Tatis has an impressive .965 OPS with 81 home runs and 52 stolen bases in his first 273 major league games from 2019-2021. He averaged 116 RBIs and 125 runs scored while averaging 48 homers and 31 stolen bases in 162 games. He signed his 14-year, $340 million blockbuster deal out of San Diego almost exactly 23 months before he did. Now he’s poised to make that big-ticket commitment again, possibly helping the Padres win his NL West title for the first time since 2006.<\/p>\n \n<\/div>\n