The San Diego Padres made one thing clear on Wednesday evening – this is Fernando Tatis Jr.’s team for the next decade-plus, and the superstar shortstop will be the franchise cornerstone for many years to come.
The Padres and the 22-year old Tatis agreed to a 14-year, $340 million contract extension on Wednesday, which is one of the largest guarantees in American sports history, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan.
Tatis is becoming one of the faces of baseball, and now boasts the third-biggest contract in baseball history, doing so at an age younger than Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Mookie Betts and Los Angeles Angels slugger Mike Trout, when they signed their respective mega-deals at age 27.
Tatis now joins Padres third baseman Manny Machado as Padres players who have been locked up with $300+ million contracts, joining the likes of New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole and slugger Giancarlo Stanton as teammates who come with a hefty price tag.
Tatis hit .277/.366/.571 with 17 home runs and 45 RBIs in 59 games last season for San Diego.
