SAN DIEGO -- How have things been going lately for Fernando Tatis Jr. at the plate? His latest home run trot told the entire story.

Riding an 8-for-47 skid, Tatis launched a solo home run in the eighth inning Saturday night -- San Diego¡¯s only offense in a 4-1 loss to the Yankees at Petco Park. As he approached third base, Tatis opted to skip his customary stutter-and-hop -- the move that has defined his home-run celebrations for years. Instead, the Padres¡¯ star right fielder kept his head down, touched third, then touched the plate with minimal theatrics.

It was a stark juxtaposition to Tatis¡¯ usual comportment. He later guessed that he hadn¡¯t skipped his signature home run move since the COVID-shortened 2020 season kept fans out of ballparks.

So ¡­ why, exactly, didn¡¯t he bust out the stutter step on Saturday night? Tatis sighed and came up with a blunt answer.

¡°I¡¯m not swaggy right now,¡± he said.

And what¡¯ll it take for that swagger to return?

¡°I need to play better,¡± he said. ¡°Then my swagger will come back.¡±

It feels a bit chicken-or-the-egg, doesn¡¯t it? Which came first for Tatis: the swagger or the game? For most of his career, he¡¯s had both in abundance. But lately, it¡¯s been a grind.

Tatis¡¯ first three at-bats told that story. He struck out twice against New York's Marcus Stroman, swinging through a number of hittable pitches over the middle of the plate. In his third at-bat, Tatis reached for a 1-0 fastball on the outside corner and bounced harmlessly to third.

¡°They've just been outsmarting me right now,¡± Tatis said. ¡°I just keep missing pitches. That should not be happening.¡±

Then again, Tatis did not miss the 1-2 meatball from Yankees reliever Luke Weaver in the eighth. He launched it a Statcast-projected 406 feet to straightaway center for his first homer in nearly two weeks.

But that one swing wouldn¡¯t stop Tatis from being as self-critical as he¡¯s ever been after a game. Something isn¡¯t working. Tatis acknowledged that he has probably been tinkering more in the past few weeks than he has before.

He¡¯s come to realize it¡¯s probably not a mechanical issue. It¡¯s his approach that needs work, he says.

¡°I need to stop missing my fastball that many times,¡± Tatis said. ¡°They've given me pitches I should be driving. Right now I'm just missing them. I need to get more picky. ¡­ I probably need to learn how to be a little bit more patient on the plate. But that's kind of not myself as a hitter. So it's more controlling my damage zone. I see it that way.¡±

Said Padres manager Mike Shildt: ¡°The big thing for him is just being able to hit the ball in the zone. He had a really good 0-2 to 3-2 walk last night, said he saw the ball good and felt good. Then he really put a good swing on the ball to center tonight. Those are good indicators.¡±

The Padres, in no uncertain terms, need Swaggy Tatis back. Saturday¡¯s loss dropped them back below .500 at 27-28. They¡¯ve gotten solid contributions from the fringes of their offense. But when they¡¯ve struggled at the plate, it¡¯s almost always because their biggest stars have struggled. That¡¯s Manny Machado (.234/.284/.360). That¡¯s Xander Bogaerts (.219/.265/.316). And it¡¯s Tatis.

Through 55 games, Tatis is hitting .244 with a .746 OPS. Not dreadful, especially considering the value he brings in right field. But it's nowhere near the lofty standards Tatis set during his first few seasons -- raising questions about whether his 2022 wrist and shoulder surgeries have had a lingering effect. Tatis has repeatedly said he¡¯s moved past those operations, physically.

In any case, the Padres need their superstar right fielder swinging like a superstar again. They need him bat-flipping and stutter-stepping and dancing around the field, too.

¡°This guy's a huge part of our offense,¡± Shildt said. ¡°Took a big swing tonight. He's been taking better swings. If he gets going, it only takes a couple swings, a couple balls to fall in, next thing you know, we're right back where we want to be.¡±

On Saturday night, Tatis cut a frustrated figure in his postgame interview. But at the end of his media session, he offered this bit of resolve:

¡°I definitely know I'm going to figure it out,¡± he said. ¡°I'm going to get out of it.¡±

In other words: He¡¯s going to be swaggering and stutter-stepping soon enough.

The Padres need it.