Fernando Tatis Jr. claims his second major defensive honor for Padres

There are awards that validate a season and then there are awards that affirm an identity. For Fernando Tatis Jr., earning his second Gold Glove lands squarely in the latter camp. Since he moved from shortstop to right field, the Padres have built a run-prevention backbone around his athleticism, range, and arm strength. 

Among National League right fielders, nobody controlled more air space or basepaths than Tatis. In a year defined by nine first-time winners across MLB, his selection felt less like a debate and more like roll call, announce the name everyone expected, then move on to the highlight reel.

Padres’ Fernando Tatis Jr. secures another Gold Glove in right field

Tatis didn’t arrive to this honor as a one-off spike; he arrived with a résumé. He won both the Gold Glove and the NL’s Platinum Glove in 2023, becoming the first Padre, and the first NL outfielder to claim the Platinum. A follow-up season like 2025 reads as consistency, not noise. He didn’t just meet the standard he set; he sustained it over another six-month gauntlet, turning tough chances into outs and daring runners into outs.

The numbers back up the eye test. Tatis led NL right fielders with +15 Defensive Runs Saved, the clearest shorthand we have for “how much did this guy help his pitcher?” Meanwhile, his +8 Outs Above Average trailed only Arizona’s Corbin Carroll (+9), a razor-thin margin that speaks to how relentlessly Tatis closed on balls in the alley and along the line. Layer on the arm, the showpiece that first wowed fans when he was a shortstop, and you get the complete package. His average throw at 95.5 mph tied for fifth among outfielders, and it changed behavior: third-base coaches swallowed sends; baserunners chopped their leads; cut-off men braced for lasers.

What makes his right-field work so sticky year over year is the versatility. Tatis plays shallow without getting burned, backs up plays that die against the Petco Park angles, and turns sprint speed into positioning rather than desperation.

There’s history rolled into this, too. With his second Gold Glove as a Padre outfielder, Tatis joins a short list of franchise repeaters: Trent Grisham (2020, ’22), Steve Finley (1995-96), Tony Gwynn (1986-87, 1989-91), and Dave Winfield (1979-80). That’s a lineage of center-piece defenders and franchise pillars. Tatis’ inclusion isn’t just a line in the media guide; it’s a signpost that the Padres’ best player is also one of their most reliable run preventers.

It’s easy to forget how quickly he made this transition. Two seasons ago, the conversation was “Can a superstar shortstop really become an elite right fielder?” Now the question has flipped: “How many runs would you willingly give back to move him anywhere else?” 

The Padres asked him to reinvent a part of his game, and he responded by mastering it, first in 2023 with the Gold and the Platinum, and again in 2025 with another Gold that felt inevitable the way sun sets over the Western Metal rooftop.