SAN DIEGO -- Fernando Tatis Jr. will have surgery to repair the labrum in his left shoulder, he said Tuesday -- a surprise reversal of his decision to avoid surgery last offseason.

Speaking with reporters for the first time since his suspension, Tatis was contrite, offering apologies to his teammates, the fans and the Padres organization. He also resolved to do a better job of being on the field for his team in the future.

The organization has long believed that the best way to keep Tatis on the field is for him to undergo shoulder surgery. In 2021, Tatis sustained multiple dislocations, which forced him to miss games. Each of those dislocations made future recurrences a bit more likely. Surgery would quash that concern.

"Moving forward, it looks like I'm going to have surgery on my shoulder," Tatis said. "I feel like I'm going to be spending a good amount of time here in San Diego during the offseason. I feel like we have a really good plan moving forward."

The recovery timetable for such a surgery is four to six months. With Tatis set to miss the first few weeks of the 2023 season while serving his suspension, the team believes he will be fully healed and ready to play when his season begins.

In fact, Tatis would likely be full-go for the start of Spring Training, manager Bob Melvin said. Tatis said he will undergo the surgery "ASAP," noting that his change of heart stemmed largely from the rehab games he played this summer.

"How I was feeling a little bit, coming back, I wasn't the best version out there,” Tatis said. “A couple games, it got in the way. I was thinking and not diving headfirst, not doing my stereotypical movement. I feel like when I come back and start everything all over, I need to be 100 percent so I can do what I know how to do."

Last offseason, Tatis opted against surgery, noting that he believed his shoulder to be stable. The team had lobbied for Tatis to get surgery but maintained it was his decision to make.

A lot has happened in the time since that decision. Tatis missed the first four months of the season after fracturing his left wrist, and now he'll miss the remainder of this year and a portion of next season while serving an 80-game suspension after testing positive for a banned substance.

"From my understanding, I think everybody was hoping at some point in time he'd have it done," Melvin said of the surgery. "So he is. I think, as far as the medical staff goes, and even now himself, I think he realizes, 'Let's get this stuff cleaned up before I come back and play.'"