FERNANDO MANIA

Fernando Tatis saunters over to the clubhouse CD player, slips in his music and cranks up the volume.

Nobody in the St. Louis Cardinals’ clubhouse complains about the frenetic sounds of Spanish rapper Boca C. And why would they?

“Mark McGwire says I’m ‘The Man,’ so I can play whatever I want,” Tatis says with a high-pitched laugh.

Hard to argue with a man who set a major league record last month by hitting two grand slams in the same inning.

The 24-year-old native of the Dominican Republic used to be known more for his wacky hairstyle--a shock of bright blond hair stands out on the right side of his head. Now it’s his homers, 11 of them going into the weekend.

Of course, he’s on a team that features another slugger. But is there room alongside Big Mac Land for a Fernando Land in the left-field bleachers? What about that empty slot on the scoreboard used last year to track the McGwire-Sammy Sosa home run race?

“No way,” Tatis says. “I haven’t done anything to deserve that.”

Maybe not yet. But star status appears to be approaching fast for Tatis, who at 5-foot-10, 170 pounds is dwarfed by the 6-5, 250-pound McGwire.

Ask Tatis how he generates so much power in such a compact body, and the 70-homer man comes up again.

“It’s that Mark McGwire stuff,” he says with another laugh, joking about the testosterone booster androstenedione that Big Mac made famous last year.

Seriously, he said the secret is a combination of daily weight-training, adjusting to pitching tactics and just trying to make good, solid contact.

“You don’t have to be big to hit 30 or 40 home runs,” Tatis said.

Hitting coach Mike Easler underestimated Tatis in spring training when he predicted the third baseman would hit 20 home runs. Now, who knows?

“The man’s got a stroke,” Easler said. “He’s learning what pitchers are doing to him. He’s starting to figure these things out. He’s one of the best. His wrists, his hands, his upper body, his balance. He’s got good snap.”

Manager Tony La Russa has seldom been around such a quick study. Tatis equaled his 11-homer output from last season on May 6, and entered the weekend third in the NL in homers and second with 34 RBIs.

“He’s not a wild swinger,” La Russa said. “The more discipline he has, I tell you, the sky’s the limit for him as far as average and production.”

McGwire, who had eight homers going into the weekend, has been reluctant to talk about Tatis at times, apparently not wanting to steal any attention.

“Fernando and Joe have been carrying us,” McGwire said, also referring to rookie outfielder Joseph McEwing. “That’s how you win championships. It’s not one guy. It’s not two guys. I encourage you guys (reporters) to talk about them all you want.”

The talk about Tatis began right away this year.

He started his second full major league season by homering in the first three games, threatening the record of four straight to open the season set by Willie Mays in 1971 and equaled by McGwire last year.

With McGwire batting ahead of him, Tatis broke a different record on April 23, hitting the first two grand slams of his career off Chan Ho Park in the third inning in Los Angeles. McGwire singled to load the bases once, then flied out to shallow right to leave them loaded the second time.

Tatis smiles at the memory of the game.

“I always think about it, because it was a good day,” Tatis said. “It comes back to my mind probably every day.”

The Rangers most likely don’t have pleasant memories of letting Tatis go on the trading deadline last July 31.

So far, the deal looks like one of the great stretch-drive steals, ranking with the Jeff Bagwell for Larry Andersen deal the Astros pulled off with the Red Sox, or the John Smoltz for Doyle Alexander heist the Braves worked with the Tigers.

The trade brought right-hander Todd Stottlemyre and shortstop Royce Clayton to the Rangers, and helped them make the playoffs. But Stottlemyre, who had priced himself out of the Cardinals’ market anyway, then signed a free-agent deal with Arizona.

Clayton, once considered the heir apparent to Ozzie Smith in St. Louis, so far has been a flop with the Rangers. He was in a 5-for-59 drought and batting .150 when he was sidelined earlier this month with a shoulder injury.

The Cardinals also got left-hander Darren Oliver in the bargain, and he’s been one of their most consistent starters. Only the McGwire trade-deadline deal with Oakland in 1997 was better for general manager Walt Jocketty.

“I think they made a mistake,” Tatis said of the Rangers.

His initial reaction to the trade was bitterness. He had spent his entire career in the Texas organization since signing as an undrafted free agent in 1992, and thought it might end that way.

“You never know in baseball; you never know where you’re going,” he said. “Today, I’m here. Tomorrow, I don’t know where I’m going to be.”

Jocketty said Tatis won’t be going anywhere.

“He’s a young guy who’s going to play for us for a long time,” he said.