*Photo from Call to the Pen*
He was the guy they wanted all along, and now he's theirs. The Philadelphia Phillies and SS Trea Turner have agreed to a 11 year, $300 million deal, according to The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal. The Phillies have confirmed.
After winning the NL Pennant and losing in 6 games in the World Series to the Houston Astros, the Phillies added more star power to their lineup in the person of Turner. He is an excellent contact hitter and a fantastic defender at shortstop, and he has the athleticism to stay there long term.
The Phillies didn't even give Turner the best offer. The San Diego Padres, who the Phillies bounced in the NLCS, offered him a long term deal worth $342 million, which would've made him the highest paid shortstop in baseball. Ultimately, he wanted to play for the Phillies. Because Turner turned down the qualifying offer, the Phillies will forfeit two draft picks, and the Los Angeles Dodgers will receive draft pick compensation as a result of Turner leaving.
In his only full season with the Dodgers, Turner had a fantastic season. He ended the year with a .298 batting average, .343 on base percentage, and .809 OPS, hitting 21 home runs to go with 100 RBI's and 27 stolen bases in 160 games. He hit .333 with two home runs in 4 playoff games last season.
Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said of his star player mindset that "I really philosophically believe that you win with star players. Now, you can’t win with star players alone, but you can build around star players. I’ve really always had that belief. As I’ve observed, it’s been successful for the clubs that win."
Turner has 8 seasons split between the Dodgers and Washington Nationals. In that time, he has a .302 batting average, .355 on base percentage, and .487 slugging percentage. He has hit 124 home runs and has driven in 434, with 230 stolen bases in 849 games, making two all star game appearances. In the playoffs, he has a .238 average with 3 home runs and 8 RBI's in 43 games, with one championship.
Since becoming an everyday player in 2018, Turner has accrued a 24.9 WAR, good for 7th best in the majors in that timespan. Among shortstops with over 2,000 plate appearances since 2016, Turner's .489 slugging percentage is 3rd best, trailing only Trevor Story and Corey Seager.
Turner is also the only player in the majors with over 90 home runs and over 140 stolen bases from 2018 to 2022. His contract includes a full no trade clause, so he'll be locked in to Philadelphia until age 41. He has top of the order potential, able to hit either first or second along with Kyle Schwarber.
The signing of Turner makes the Phillies lineup one of the best in baseball. He's surrounded by Schwarber, Nick Castellanos, Rhys Hoskins, JT Realmuto, and Alec Bohm, among others. He'll share the middle of the infield with Bryson Stott, who is set to become the starting second baseman.
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