Padres' Fernando Tatis Jr. breaks silence on home run drought

Padres' Fernando Tatis Jr. breaks silence on home run drought originally appeared on The Sporting News

The San Diego Padres are right behind the Los Angeles Dodgers for the NL West lead, and need to overcome some hurdles to take the West, and potentially, a first-round bye.

But one of the main issues plaguing the team is their lack of power. Only the Pittsburgh Pirates have fewer home runs than the Padres this season, and while they've been better since the trade deadline, there's one player who's struggled to hit the long ball.

That hitter is Fernando Tatis Jr., and in a recent piece from Eno Sarris and Dennis Lin of The Athletic, Tatis commented on his lack of home run hitting lately, revealing why he hasn't been hitting as many home runs lately.

Tatis Isn't Hitting Home Runs

The Padres could use some power from Tatis, but with what he's doing offensively, he's not been a bad player. Since the beginning of June, Tatis has had four home runs in 67 games. He hasn't hit a home run since July 24th.

His comments in the piece from The Athletic point towards why he's not hitting as many home runs lately, and how he's approaching his lack of power this season.

"I'm just trying to be a good hitter," Tatis said, "get on base, and yeah, I'm not hitting homers..."

In that time frame, even though he has a lack of power, he's still been a solid hitter. He has a .260 batting average with a .391 on-base percentage and a .380 slugging percentage for a .771 OPS.

Those aren't bad numbers by any means, but considering his home run hitting potential, which he displayed through May this season, when he hit 13 home runs in 55 games, his lack of power is still a concern.

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These struggles at the plate are solely with his power, as he's still a good hitter overall. But, as Tatis mentions, "I'm still searching and just trying to compete every single day."

His swing and power are a work in progress. Considering the NL West is still within reach, and Tatis is still a positive contributor at the plate, if he can find his pop, he could be one of the most dangerous hitters in baseball again.

Sitting two games behind the Dodgers, the Padres could use Tatis's bat to come alive. But, fortunately for San Diego, Tatis is still an effective hitter even while his bat hasn't been the best.

Tatis is searching for ways to generate more power without sacrificing his hitting prowess this season. It's a work in progress, but if he can figure it out, the Padres would see their batting order become even more deadly.

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