Denver (Associated Press)-The gold-plated necklace worn by Fernando Tatis Jr. at the All-Star Celebration is gorgeous and eye-catching-just like his game.
The San Diego heavy hitter nicknamed “El Niño”-he proudly wears it on the chain-is undoubtedly a home run, bat-turning power show. More importantly, when he became a fun ambassador for baseball games, he exuded a cool breath.
Talented young stars such as Tatis, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., as well as his Toronto teammate Bobby Chet, Juan Soto of Washington, Ozzie Albis of Atlanta, and of course the Los Angeles Angels The pitching/batting genius Shohei Otani is sweeping the game. They will make their full debut at the All-Star Game on Tuesday night-an entertainment show not to be missed.
As a performer, Tatis even hinted that if he goes deeper, he will not only make memorable bat flips, but also swagger below the bottom line.
No pitcher will give up that particular long ball. Injecting a bit of fun is just one of his evolving roles, but also its spokesperson. These are the roles he takes seriously-in a happy way, that is.
“I do accept it,” Tatis said before the home run derby on Monday. “A lot of responsibilities come with it. But I just want to have some fun with the same kid. This game is really, really hard.”
He also makes it look very simple. All these next-generation players do the same. The top three home run leaders in the All-Star Game are all 27 or younger, and Otani leads at 33. Tatis and Guerrero each had 28 homers.
It only applies to Tatis and Guerrero. The two 22-year-old players are the sons of major league players.
“Since there were children, two sons from major league parents are here now. This is an amazing story,” Tatis said. “The way this world works is crazy.”
One of the rising stars that won’t be there in the game is Ronald Acuña Jr. (Ronald Acuña Jr.). The 23-year-old Warriors outfielder landed awkwardly after trying to jump onto the warning runway over the weekend and tore the ACL in his right knee. Make a difficult capture.
24-year-old Albis said: “He played very hard, but he was injured.” “I feel sorry for our team. He is the superstar of our team.”
At present, these young people in their 20s are very good and very popular.
“How can you not develop games around these young stars?” said Aaron Judge, a 29-year-old Yankees outfielder. “I can’t imagine entering the league at the age of 20, 21, 22. It’s great. It’s amazing to do what they are doing here. I think about what Tatis, Vlady Jr., Bo Bichette is doing. , This is very special.
“It is the right way to develop the game around players who will be in the league for 10 or 15 years. You will have a fan base that grows around these guys.”
The fact that Guerrero leads the league with an average (0.332) and RBI (73) is not shocking to Bichette. For some time, he has been sitting in the front seat of the Guerrero Theater.
“People asked me if I was surprised because his season was ridiculous. But after seeing him in the minor leagues, this is what you expected,” Bichet said. “He is so talented. He is so amazing. It doesn’t matter who is on the mound.”
Earlier this season, when the Brave first baseman Freddie Freeman saw his average level hovering around 0.220, it was his 4-year-old son begging him to find his best form.
After all, Charlie Freeman wants his father to enter the All-Star team so he can meet Tatis. The presentation is at the top of Freeman’s list of priorities this week.
“I only care about making Charlie happy, and Fernando is an important part of it,” Freeman said. “Fernando has no choice but to make Charlie happy.”
Freeman’s son also listed Acuna, Albis and the 28-year-old politician Bryce Harper as his favorite players.
“Then he said,’Oh, yes. So are you, Dad,” said the 31-year-old Freeman, who was selected to the All-Star team for the fifth time. “There are many young people who ask you to stop and watch their shots or watch their pitches.”
It is their mission.
“We want to have fun,” Guerrero said through an interpreter. “Everyone here wants to have fun. We try to do this and that is what we are doing. We will continue to have fun.”
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Associated Press freelancers Dennis Georgatos and Michael Kelly contributed to this report.
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