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The Philadelphia Phillies have several players on the injured list, and they also have a couple of players struggling to produce. Trea Turner is one of them. When the Phillies signed Turner to an 11-year, $300 million contract back in 2022, they probably would not have expected a steady decline in his performance.
Turner put up some impressive numbers with the Los Angeles Dodgers in his final year. The sole reason why the Phillies secured him for a long-term deal. While many players experience a slump now and then, Turner’s struggles are becoming pretty evident.
Trea Turner’s Concerning Numbers
Turner is slashing .246 at the plate with a .296 OBP and a .692 OPS in 402 at-bats. That’s not good enough for the Phillies, especially since they are struggling to retake the lead in the National League East. To make matters worse, his advanced metrics tell a different story.
Trea Turner’s hard-hit rate has been the lowest since 2018. His BABIP (Batting Average on Balls in Play) is at .285. Offensively, it’s not a great year for Turner. While it might not seem too bad either, it’s his defense that is also a cause for concern.
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Turner holds a minus-10 DRS (Defensive Runs Saved), minus-6 OAA (Outs Above Average), and minus-7 FRV (Fielding Run Value). His in-zone swing percentage has also dropped to 69.0 from 72, comparatively, in the last five seasons. Those numbers don’t sit well, especially for a player like Turner with a lucrative deal.
The Phillies front office and President of Baseball Operations, Dave Dombrowski, are probably unhappy thinking about that deal right now. However, the good news is that Turner has already shown some signs of improvement while playing against the Dodgers. He still has the second half of the season to pick up the pace, but along with his improvement came a couple of errors.
Trea Turner Helps the Phillies Defeat the Dodgers
Turner won the player of the game after putting up a good show in Citizens Bank Park. The shortstop crushed a two-run homer at the bottom of the second and went deep again with a three-run shot at the bottom of the sixth. Recording his 200th career home run.
Defensively, Turner struggled, extending his total errors to 15. The slugger was charged with just one error, which could have turned out to be four. His error had the Dodgers load the bases, and Phillies fans didn’t hesitate to boo Turner.
The good news is that he turned the game around and helped them win. Turner has also picked up the pace, and it’s something he needs to stick to. In the last 27 games, the All-Star is slashing .324 with seven home runs and an OPS of .943. Again, he’s committed nine defensive errors in that span.
The Phillies are expected to make a trade or bring in another player. It’s unclear if they would part ways with Turner.
Can the Phillies Trade Trea Turner?
It’s certainly a long shot given Turner’s huge contract. At present, he’s making $27.3 million per season. There are not going to be many teams ready to take that load. It’s tough for the Phillies to dump Turner right now. The only thing they can hope for is to see Turner continue his success. Most importantly, he needs to improve his defensive game.
The Phillies have a strong shot of making the playoffs, but Turner must develop into a strong weapon before October. Apart from Turner, Alec Bohm is also seeing signs of struggle. There are plenty of questions in Philadelphia right now.
At present, the team is turning to its internal options. The club is expected to call up Brian De La Cruz to fill in the outfield.
Main Photo Credit: Kyle Ross-Imagn Images
