SAN DIEGO -- Fernando Tatis Jr. is officially on his way back.

Tatis began a rehab stint with Triple-A El Paso on Tuesday night as he builds toward his expected return to the Padres on April 20.

Tatis, who was suspended for 80 games last August after a positive PED test, is afforded a 15-game rehab stint before his return to the big leagues. He was also eligible to participate in Spring Training, where he played regularly and began his full-time transition to right field.

On top of the suspension, Tatis is returning from surgeries last fall to his left wrist and shoulder. The Padres eased him along early in camp, focusing on his health. But the 24-year-old has indicated that he’s fully built up at this point.

"I feel like I'm ready right now," Tatis said on the final day of camp. "Just keep building up. But if it would have been go-day tomorrow, I would have been ready."

Tatis started spring slowly, perhaps shaking off a bit of rust, as he went 0-for-his-first-16. But he broke out in a big way after that, going 12-for-28 with a pair of homers. Tatis finished spring with a .272/.341/.432 slash line, and when the Padres broke camp last week, he remained behind at the team’s spring complex, playing in back-field games.

On Tuesday, Tatis got his first Triple-A action, leading off and playing right field for El Paso against the Giants’ affiliate in Sacramento. He went 1-for-2 with an RBI single, two walks and a run scored before coming out in the bottom of the seventh in a defensive substitution. All El Paso games are available on MiLB.TV and free to MLB.TV subscribers who have selected the Padres as their favorite team.

Manager Bob Melvin noted that Tatis is expected to play approximately seven innings in each of the first two games before an off-day Thursday.

Tatis will build toward a full-time workload over the next 15 days. But Melvin noted that he didn’t expect any limitations on Tatis after his return (which is tentatively slated for April 20, but subject to change in the event of postponements).

“By the time he gets back here, we expect him to be a full-go, just like anybody else,” Melvin said.