Fernando Tatis Jr of San Diego played an active part in the match against the New York Mets at Petco Park,home stadium, on the 4th.Tatis Jr., who appeared as the 4th shortstop starting that day, led the team to a 4-3 victory with two hits and two RBIs in four at-bats, including one home run in three innings.

His two-run four against Taijuan Walker in the third inning was Tatis Jr.'s 17th home run of the season.With this home run, Tatis Jr. started the 22-year-old season that will remain in history.The match was Tatis Jr.'s 40th individual game of the season.Tatis Jr. is the only player in MLB history to hit 17 home runs in the first 40 games of the season based on the individual under-22 season.

The previous record was 15 held by Bryce Harper then Washington now Philadelphia in 2015. Harper's home run pace, which was praised as a 'genius player' at the time, drew attention throughout the United States.Harper, who ran hot from the start, became the League's Most Valuable Player (MVP) in 2015 after showing off his incredible hitting productivity of 42 home runs, 99 RBIs, and 1.109 OPS (on-base percentage + slugging percentage).However, Tatis Jr.'s home run pace surpassed that of Harper at the time.

Of course, he was placed on the injured list twice due to a shoulder injury and Covid 19, which could be at a disadvantage in the cumulative record. Same-age Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (Toronto) is hitting 17 home runs in his first 40 games, less than Tatis Jr. with 11 home runs, but playing more.But Tatis Jr.'s current pace is more than enough to make up for the gap he's played a few games less.

What's surprising is that Tatis Jr.'s position is shortstop, which is a very stamina-consuming shortstop. Harper and Trout are outfielders, and Guerrero Jr is first base.It is a position where you can focus more on attack compared to shortstop.However,Tatis Jr is making a splash, becoming the fastest shortstop in MLB history to reach the 50-home run mark.

It is also interesting that there are two players who will succeed Harper and Trout's 22-year-old MVP award lineage. Local media including Baseball Reference define Trout's 22-year-old season born in August 1991 as 2014, and Harper's 22-year-old season born in October 1992 as 2015. Coincidentally, Trout won his first MVP award in 2014 and Harper in 2015. And Tatis Jr. and Guerrero Jr. are also 22 years old this year.

If you look at the current betting company's dividend, Tatis Jr. is competing with Ronald Acuña Jr. (Atlanta) and Guerrero Jr. is competing fiercely for MVP competition with Shohei Ohtani (LA Angels), respectively. It is difficult to predict as it is not yet halfway through the season, but if he continues his current performance, he can become a strong enough candidate in terms of numbers and impact.