Padres GM reveals inside story of Fernando Tatis Jr. trade with White Sox

San Diego Padres general manager A.J. Preller revealed the front office's rationale behind signing Fernando Tatis Jr. from the Chicago White Sox and how it came about. The 26-year-old is currently leading the NL in home runs and is displaying MVP-calibre performances in San Diego.

Fernando Tatis Jr. was signed as an international free agent by the Chicago White Sox in 2015. In less than a year, the San Diego Padres traded for Tatis Jr. and Erik Johnson in exchange for starting pitcher James Shields. The Dominican rose through the minor leagues before earning his major league debut in 2019.

Looking back at that deal now, A.J. Preller reveals that the Padres scouting team had monitored Tatis Jr. from a young age and he was the key piece for them. On Tuesday's episode of "The Show," Preller revealed the inside story behind the trade:

(23:36 - 26:15)

"He was a guy that our group, we had a history from the amateur international days. So we had seen him as a young player, which always helps. So, we targeted him as a guy that we wanted to focus on. He hadn't played a game yet, so he was in the backfield in a practice setting in the practice games.

"But our pro scouting group went in and thought, yeah... We thought he was the type of guy that could potentially be an impactful franchise player. So when we made the deal, he was the key piece in the deal. He's a true five-tool talent, our scouts saw that before we made the deal. We were hoping that he continued to progress to be that player."

Fernando Tatis Jr. has repaid the faith shown in him by the Padres front office. Since returning from injury in the playoffs last year, he has been in hot form and has led the Padres to the joint-best record in the MLB this season.

Team USA manager plays down Fernando Tatis Jr.'s chances for a top-2 finish in NL MVP race

We are not even halfway through the MLB season and Fernando Tatis Jr. has emerged as a possible NL MVP candidate. While the hosts of MLB Central predicted Tatis Jr. to finish in the top 2, Team USA manager Mike DeRosa disagreed, saying:

"I just think Ohtani's going to go bonkers at some point, and I think Lindor is too. Lindor might win it."

According to DeRosa, such predictions should not just be made off the numbers that we have seen so far. For him, Francisco Lindor holds the biggest sway in his team among the competitors and will have the best chance of dethroning Shohei Ohtani this year.