This article was originally published on www.si.com/mlb/padres as Padres' Fernando Tatis Jr 'Who You Want to Be' as Player, Says NL West Rival. A National League West player labeled outfielder Fernando Tatis Jr. as the prototypical mold for a baseball player.

And during the MLB All-Star Game activities on Monday, another example of that was shown as Dodgers catcher Will Smith, who was selected as the starting backstop for the National League, gave his props to the Padres' Dominican star.

De La Cruz was one of a half-dozen of Tatis’ NL All-Star teammates who spoke Monday about the Padres’ 26-year-old right fielder. On the night his All-Star selection was announced, Tatis was asked if he was surprised.