Padres star Fernando Tatís Jr. recently got slighted by an ESPN announcer on Sunday Night Baseball when his team played the Dodgers.
ESPN commentator Eduardo Perez would like to apologize to anyone he offended when he insinuated that Fernando Tatís Jr. was not a superstar.
On Sunday Night Baseball, the San Diego Padres closed out the series against the Los Angeles Dodgers and ended up losing 5-2. Among the highlights of the game was a Mookie Betts game-tying homer in the ninth inning, and it was at that point ESPN's Perez slipped up in the color commentary, saying a seemingly innocent statement at the wrong time.
After Betts' homer, cameras panned to Padres star Fernando Tatís Jr.; at that moment, Perez said, "That's what a superstar looks like, Nando. Mookie Betts."
It's hard not to pick up on what Perez is insinuating there, and viewers were quick to point out that Tatís was performing much better than Betts this series:
The day after the game, Perez apologized on MLB Network Radio and owned up to his gaffe, telling listeners that he was carried away by the moment.
"And this is the human side because it's all live. I own it 100 percent because I saw the replay later on when I got here and I cringed. This is one that I'll also have to apologize to the player. Because that's not right. That's not who I am and that's not how I sound professionally on-air… there was no reason to single him out that way."
ESPN announcer apologizes to Fernando Tatís Jr. for subtle dig
Because Perez insulted Tatís on a national broadcast, his comment naturally received plenty of criticism. ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball booth has gotten negative feedback for its mistake-laden commentary particularly in that Padres-Dodgers game, and Perez was doing a bit of necessary damage control.
The heightened controversy stems from many critics believing that Tatís is not up to par with other MLB superstars given his recent history.
The Padres slugger is in his fifth MLB season and recently overcame an injury hump in 2022 that saw him miss the entire last season. Tatís was also hit with an 80-game suspension for violating the league's performance-enhancing drugs policy.
But Tatís is just two years removed from leading the NL in home runs, and a few more years removed from his MVP season in 2018. He's finished in the top five of NL MVP voting twice in his career, and his latest struggles don't necessarily detract from his past dominant form.
To some, Tatís still remains as bright a superstar as ever. To others, his starlight has faded, and he'll be lucky to put together a decent season for the Padres in 2023. Just don't go announcing it on-air.