Trea Turner has signed with the Philadelphia Phillies, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan. Turner will sign an 11-year deal worth $300 million with a full no-trade clause. The latest acquisition will have Turner paired with Bryce Harper for quite some time. Both players signed similar deals with the Phillies as they are committed to the franchise for the long run.
BREAKING: Shortstop Trea Turner and the Philadelphia Phillies are in agreement on a contract, a source tells ESPN.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) December 5, 2022
Trea Turner’s Career
The San Diego Padres traded Turner to the Washington Nationals in 2015. Team officials questioned whether or not the then-prospect could develop into a solid shortstop. But, with Turner now an established player, he has been a quality talent since breaking into the big leagues. He transitioned from a rookie to a true superstar over the past few seasons, making his debut in 2016. Despite playing less than half of the season, he hit .342/.370/.567 with 13 home runs and a 147 wRC+. Furthermore, he collected 35 extra-base hits while stealing 33 bases in 73 games. No rookie reached those numbers while playing in a short period.
He continued climbing to stardom with fantastic campaigns in 2017 and 2018. In 2019, Turner helped the Nationals win their first World Series title against the Houston Astros. A July 2021 trade to the Los Angeles Dodgers along with Max Scherzer allowed Turner to showcase his talents for a successful team. In 2021, Turner won the NL batting title with a .328 batting average, which was the best in the majors. He also led his peers with 195 hits while sitting first on the NL leaderboards with 32 stolen bases and 319 bases.
Since 2020, the 28-year-old has been hitting .316/.364/.514 with 137 OPS+, 61 home runs, and 71 stolen bases across 367 games in 1,613 plate appearances. He hit .298 in 2022 with 21 home runs and 100 RBI while finishing second in baseball with 194 hits, trailing teammate Freddie Freeman.
Philadelphia has arguably the best of the top four shortstops on the free-agent market. However, next season will bring new rules to baseball, as there will be limits to defensive shifts, pitch timers and bigger bases. Like Turner, Xander Bogaerts, Carlos Correa and Dansby Swanson will continue to garner interest from teams needing infield help.
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Players mentioned:
Trea Turner, Max Scherzer, Freddie Freeman, Xander Bogaerts, Carlos Correa, Dansby Swanson
