3 Padres hitters who outperformed expectations in April

Which San Diego Padres hitters carried the lineup in April?

The San Diego Padres were in a rough spot, starting the season without Fernando Tatis Jr., but in his absence, they performed to a first-place tie with the Los Angeles Dodgers at the top of the NL West standings.

As of May 1, they’re 15-8 with winning records at home and on the road.

So how did they get there without Tatis, who led the NL with 42 home runs last year? The lineup stepped up, hitting 21 homers and scoring 104 runs. The lineup hit .231/.328/.380 with a .707 OPS, which is actually significantly better than the league’s collective .231/.306/.369 line and .675 OPS.

Here are three hitters who carried the crew in Tatis’ absence:

San Diego Padres hitters who carried the team in April: Eric Hosmer

Eric Hosmer entered his fifth season with the Padres in a weird spot, because he knew they’d tried hard to trade him.

His response was to have a monster April that should put him at the top of the list of National League Player of the Month contenders.

Over his first 20 games of the year, Hosmer hit .389/.457/.597 with a 1.054 OPS, and his 28 hits included six doubles and three homers. He scored 10 runs, drove in 14, drew nine walks, and only struck out 12 times. That .389 average leads all MLB hitters, by the way.

San Diego Padres hitters who carried the team in April: Ha-seong Kim

Subbing in for Fernando Tatis Jr. is no easy feat, but Ha-Seong Kim rose to the challenge in April, hitting 271/.364/.563 with a .926 OPS. Over 16 games, he collected 13 hits, including three doubles and a trio of home runs. He also scored 13 times and drove in 10 runs.

Kim’s three homers also tie Hosmer for third-most on the team.

With Tatis out until at least the first week of June, Kim will need to keep it up.