Fernando Tatis Jr. caps epic FanFest by signing Padres fan's thigh

The San Diego Padres are banking on a redemption season from Fernando Tatis Jr. After getting popped for performance-enhancing drugs and undergoing surgeries to address a shoulder injury and wrist injuries sustained in a motorcyle accident last offseason.

Tatis' 80-game ban will cost him the first 20 games of the 2023 season. That'll put a heavier burden on Manny Machado, Juan Soto, and Xander Bogaerts to lead the offense, but the fact the Padres even have that much star power in Tatis' wake is almost unprecedented.

Despite a turbulent 2022, Padres fans are still in Tatis' corner. So much so, that he may reclaim his place as the face of baseball if he returns to superstar form.

Amid all of Tatis' off-field distractions, San Diego diehards haven't wavered. That continued this past weekend into Padres FanFest. The turnout was utterly insane, as upwards of 48,000 fans showed up to Petco Park for Saturday's festivities.

Tatis was one of several Padres players who signed autographs for fans. One fan in particular, though, had the 24-year-old sign his thigh. Shortly thereafter, the fan went to a local tattoo parlor, and got the autographed tattooed on his leg!

Padres' Fernando Tatis Jr. signs fan's thigh, fan proceeds to get autographed tattooed.

What a way to cap an incredible FanFest.

Why get a Padres jersey, a spare baseball, or Padres hat -- pretty much any form of fan memorabilia -- signed by Tatis when the star shortstop-turned-outfielder could simply sign your upper leg? And why stop there when you get said autographed forever engrained on your skin? This proves once again that Padres fan are one of a kind.

Tatis even got in on the fun by replying to a video of the exchange on social media.

Epic. Unfathomable. Downright insane. All words suffice here.

Unfortunately, Tatis isn't the trend-setter when it comes to MLB players having their signature tattooed into (onto?) a fan's skin. In 2021, Dodgers outfielder Matt Beaty saw his autograph tattooed into a Dodgers fan's forearm. The fan lived to regret that decision, as Meaty was dealt to San Diego, of all places, a few months later.

Luckily for this Padres fan, Tatis isn't going anywhere. Short of another off-field misstep, or Tatis falling off a cliff from a production standpoint, the one-time All-Star is locked into San Diego for the next 12 years after he inked a 14-year, $340 million contract extension back during the 2021 offseason.