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San Diego Padres star Fernando Tatis Jr. said he expects to face plenty of vitriol from opposing players and fans in 2023 because of his positive test last year for a performance-enhancing substance. He got an early taste on Wednesday night.

Tatis belted a solo home run Wednesday during his second minor league rehab game with Triple-A El Paso, where he will play for the next two weeks as he completes his 80-game suspension.

After being booed while rounding the bases by the home fans at Triple-A Sacramento, Tatis also caught flak on social media from Kade McClure, the pitcher who allowed the homer. McClure, responding to a video highlight of Tatis’ homer, called the two-time Silver Slugger a “cheater” who was playing in the game because of a “steroid suspension.” He deleted the tweet Thursday afternoon.

McClure, 27, is in his first season at Sacramento, the Triple-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants. The right-hander appeared in 44 games at Triple-A Charlotte last season, his fifth in the Chicago White Sox organization.

Tatis was suspended on Aug. 12 after testing positive for Clostebol, a synthetic form of testosterone. The former All-Star blamed his positive test on a cream he said he took for ringworm.

The 80-game suspension carried over into this season and Tatis will not be eligible to return to the Padres until April 20. Tatis said earlier this year that upon his return, he is “looking forward to the challenge” of playing in front of fans who likely will boo him throughout the season.

“It’s going to be one of the most emotional years, I feel like, in my career,” Tatis told reporters in February. “I’m looking to embrace it.”

Prior to the suspension, Tatis already had missed the first four months of the 2022 season while recovering from wrist surgery. He also underwent surgery on his troublesome shoulder during the suspension.

Tatis, 24, appeared in 16 games with the Padres during spring training last month, batting .273 with two homers in 44 at-bats.

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Cards’ Contreras out with foot contusion after HBP

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Cards' Contreras out with foot contusion after HBP

ST. LOUIS — Cardinals first baseman Willson Contreras was not in the lineup Wednesday against the Colorado Rockies a day after he was hit in the foot by a pitch and broke his bat in frustration.

Contreras, listed as day-to-day with a right foot contusion, was hit by Rockies starter Kyle Freeland‘s sweeper in the fourth inning. He then slammed his bat into the dirt and snapped it over his knee.

As he walked toward first base, the 33-year-old threw the two pieces of the broken bat toward the Cardinals’ dugout.

He remained in the game until the sixth inning, when he was replaced by Nolan Gorman.

The Cardinals said X-rays did not reveal any structural damage in Contreras’ foot.

Contreras has been hit by a National League-leading 18 pitches this season, trailing only Randy Arozarena and Ty France.

Contreras leads the Cardinals with 16 home runs and 65 RBIs.

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Rangers’ struggling García to IL with ankle injury

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Rangers' struggling García to IL with ankle injury

ARLINGTON, Texas — The Texas Rangers put struggling slugger Adolis García on the 10-day injured list with a sprained left ankle and activated outfielder Evan Carter.

Texas, which is chasing an American League wild-card berth, made the moves their series finale against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Wednesday.

Another outfielder, Wyatt Langford, was held out of the lineup because of forearm stiffness, but manager Bruce Bochy said he could be available to pinch-hit.

García is hitting .224 with 16 homers and 64 RBIs in 116 games. He hit .176 (6 for 34) during the nine-game homestand that ended with Wednesday’s game.

Carter, who turns 23 later this month, missed 10 games because of back spasms. He was in a 4-for-34 slump when he was placed on the IL on Aug. 2. He hit .238 with four homers and 21 RBIs in 55 games before then.

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D-backs’ DeSclafani to IL after turn as starter

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D-backs' DeSclafani to IL after turn as starter

ARLINGTON, Texas — The Arizona Diamondbacks placed right-hander Anthony DeSclafani on the 15-day injured list Wednesday because of right thumb inflammation after he made three starts.

DeSclafani (1-2, 4.36 ERA) has been primarily a reliever for the Diamondbacks but made the starts this month after Merrill Kelly was traded to the Texas Rangers at the deadline on July 31.

Arizona made the move with DeSclafani before the series finale at Texas, when Kelly was starting for the Rangers. The Diamondbacks recalled right-hander Casey Kelly from Triple-A Reno.

“We’re hoping for the minimal time. He’s going to get some imaging just to make sure that everything’s OK,” manager Torey Lovullo said. “This is something that popped up a couple days ago. We all felt that he was going to be able to take the baseball and go out there and compete, which he did. We saw the stuff in the first couple of innings, and we decided it was time to take him off the field.”

In the three starts this month, DeSclafani is 0-1 with a 5.59 ERA, allowing six runs in 9⅔ innings. He threw three innings Tuesday night, allowing two runs in a game Arizona won 3-2 on a homer by Ketel Marte in the ninth.

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