Fernando Tatis Jr. has managed to produce the bat flip of the year … before even the start of the MLB season.
The San Diego Padres star Tatis was suited up for his native Dominican Republic during Wednesday’s World Baseball Classic game against Venezuela in Pool D play. In the fourth inning at loanDepot Park in Miami, Fla., Tatis came up to bat with runners on the corners and two outs.
Tatis tattooed a 1-1 offering from Venezuela’s Antonio Senzatela into the left-field seats for a three-run home run to give the Dominican Republic a commanding 7-3 lead. But perhaps even better than the dinger was the bat flip that Tatis uncorked in the process.
In the same motion after launching the pitch from Senzatela, Tatis helicoptered his bat down the third-base line. The bat then landed on the dirt with a dramatic thud as the local crowd in Miami roared in approval.
Here is the video.
NOW IT'S NANDO'S TURN!!! 🇩🇴 pic.twitter.com/up5kC3iGr7
— World Baseball Classic (@WBCBaseball) March 12, 2026
The three-time MLB All-Star Tatis, 27, is no stranger to epic bat flips and even busted one out for the Padres last season on a walkoff home run. But doing so for his native Dominican Republic surely added to the sense of pride for Tatis, especially with the D.R. already having advanced to the knockout rounds of the World Baseball Classic, regardless of the result of Wednesday’s game against Venezuela.
