Two homers and a stolen grand slam: Fernando Tatis Jr. dominates Mets in historic outing

Fernando Tatis Jr. produced one of the most memorable all-around performances of his career Tuesday night, leading the San Diego Padres to a 5-2 victory over the New York Mets at Citi Field.

Tatis immediately announced his presence by crushing the first pitch he saw from Mets pitcher Zac Thornton. The towering drive traveled 452 feet into the second deck in left field, giving San Diego an early lead and marking the 18th leadoff home run of Tatis ’ career.

His bat wasn't finished though. In the fifth inning, Tatis came through again, launching a two-run homer to complete his second multi-homer game of the season.

The performance was particularly significant considering how slowly his power had arrived in 2026. Tatis went through his first 238 at-bats without hitting a home run before finally breaking through.

By the end of Tuesday's game, however, the Padres star had made up for lost time. The biggest moment of the night, though, came with his glove.

Tatis makes MLB history with spectacular defensive play

With the bases loaded in the second inning, Francisco Lindor sent a deep fly ball toward the right-field wall. The drive appeared destined to clear the fence for a grand slam, but Tatis had other plans.

The Padres right fielder raced toward the wall, timed his leap perfectly and reached over the fence to pull the ball back. His hat flew off as he landed, and for a moment, even the players weren't certain he'd completed the catch.

Once Tatis raised his glove, the reality became clear: He'd just taken a grand slam away from Lindor.

The play proved enormously important. Padres starter Robbie Ray had walked three batters to load the bases, and a grand slam would've dramatically changed the game. Instead, Tatis erased the threat and helped Ray escape the inning.

Ray ultimately settled down to deliver his best start as a Padre, working six innings and allowing just one run while striking out four.

The combination of two home runs and a grand-slam robbery also put Tatis in rare company. According to OptaSTATS, he's the first MLB player since Seattle Mariners outfielder Mike Cameron in 2002 to hit multiple home runs and rob a grand slam in the same game.

Tatis himself made it clear which achievement he enjoyed most. Following the game, he said the robbery was more fun than hitting the home runs.

“Tough challenge,” Tatis said. “But robbery today was more fun.”

His manager, Craig Stammen, also highlighted how unusual the performance was, noting that Tatis both created runs with his bat and prevented them with his glove.

Tatis finished the night with two homers, three RBIs and one of the season's most spectacular defensive highlights. His 14th career two-homer game also moved him into a tie for second place in Padres history.

The star outfielder later added his own touch to an unforgettable evening, posting a GIF of Maximus from Gladiator on X with the famous question, “Are you not entertained?”

After a difficult start to the season, Tatis certainly gave the answer with his performance in New York.