Padres place rookie SS Tatis on IL

The San Diego Padres placed shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. on the 10-day injured list Tuesday with a strained left hamstring.

The 20-year-old rookie phenom was injured during Sunday's game against the Washington Nationals when he awkwardly did the splits. An MRI exam revealed no structural damage.

The Padres haven't pinpointed how long Tatis will be sidelined but he could end up missing several weeks.

"He's going to be out a number of weeks," San Diego manager Andy Green told reporters prior to Tuesday's game against the Atlanta Braves. "Exactly how many weeks depends on how he responds to it."

Tatis is batting .300 with six homers, 13 RBIs and six steals in 27 games. He has lived up to his billing as a future star during his short stay in the majors.

"For the organization, he means a lot to us. He means a lot to our future," Green said. "We're not going to be cautious just to be cautious. We're going to make sure he is ready to take every step he's taking. Hopefully, he'll be back relatively quickly. But this provides some opportunities for other guys on the baseball field."

Green said third baseman Manny Machado will be the primary shortstop while Tatis is sidelined. Rookie Ty France will play third.

"What a weapon to have as a manager, to have that good of a third baseman who's also that good of a shortstop," Green said of Machado. "His selflessness and willingness to bounce around for us, to slide over to shortstop and fill that void for us, is a great thing to have."

Tatis' injury occurred when he reached for a throw while covering second base in the 10th inning of Sunday's game and was trying to keep his right foot on the bag. His left foot was sliding forward as he stretched to catch a high throw from pitcher Matt Wisler, and he unexpectedly found himself in a full split with the right foot coming off the bag.

Tatis laid on his stomach as club trainers worked on him. He eventually got up and slowly walked off the field.

San Diego recalled right-handed reliever Phil Maton from Triple-A El Paso to fill the roster opening.

Maton had a 5.14 ERA in five appearances for the Padres earlier this season.

Also, the Padres will recall right-hander Cal Quantrill on Wednesday to make his major league debut. Quantrill was a first-round pick (eighth overall) in 2016. The 24-year-old is 3-1 with a 4.68 ERA in five starts for Triple-A El Paso.

--Field Level Media