Trea Turner is less than halfway through the first season of an 11-year/$300 million deal with the Phillies. It’s far too early to make any declarations about whether his time in Philadelphia will or won’t be viewed as a success.
But in a city frustrated by a myriad of crushing postseason defeats over the last calendar year, there has been some disappointment from fans about the fact that the version of Turner who looked like the best shortstop on the planet in the World Baseball Classic hasn’t yet shown himself in red pinstripes.
Trea Turner still has more HRs and RBI in the World Baseball Classic than he does as a Phillie
— Phillies Muse (@Phillies_Muse) May 20, 2023
WBC — Phillies —
6 Games 44 Games
5 HRs 4 HRs
11 RBI 10 RBI pic.twitter.com/130WkOvznB
Phillies manager Rob Thomson has been around the likes of Alex Rodriguez, Bryce Harper and Nick Castellanos early in major contracts. And as he explained why Turner was getting a day off Saturday morning, Thomson acknowledged that players can sometimes press early in an attempt to justify the major investment made in them.
“Yes, it is [normal],” Thomson said. “And it’s not just the contract, it’s the fanbase … it’s your teammates … it’s everything. So I think it’s a natural thing, and he’ll come out of it.”
It’s a feeling that Kyle Schwarber can relate to. While he homered in his first at-bat as a Phillie after signing a four-year/$79 million deal, he was hitting just .185 after May last season.
“Yeah, I mean, I think it’s just natural, right?” Schwarber said after a 12-3 win over the Cubs Saturday. “Like when you come into a new place and you’re gonna be here for multiple years, you want to make a good statement of yourself, right?”
“When you feel like you’re not living up to your own expectations, you kind of get in your own way,” Schwarber continued. “And I’m not saying that for him, I’m saying I felt that last year at some point early in the year when I was scuffling. For me, it was just going out there and trying to put in the work and be the same guy every day. And I know that’s what Trea is doing.”
Schwarber and Turner are polar opposites in terms of what type of players they are, and the latter signed a contract that comes with significantly more pressure than the former.
But Schwarber was previously teammates with Turner in Washington, and had a front-row seat when the shortstop had an other-worldy performance for Team USA in the World Baseball Classic.
Turner’s OPS has slipped to .692, and his strikeout percentage has spiked to 26.6% in 2023, more than eight points above his career average of 18.4%. Not to mention, Turner has six errors at shortstop, and -3 defensive runs saved so far.
But you can tell a lot about a struggling player by getting the perspective of their teammates. The plan is for Turner to be back in the lineup for the series finale against the Cubs tomorrow, and Schwarber seems confident he’ll have a positive impact sooner rather than later for the Phillies.
“I can’t speak for how he’s feeling or anything like that, but whenever he’s out there on the field, that’s a really good day for the Phillies.”
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