Phillies fans defending Trea Turner's honor after latest round of slander

Trea Turner is winning over fans with his best season since joining the Phillies.
Division Series - Philadelphia Phillies v Atlanta Braves - Game Two
Division Series - Philadelphia Phillies v Atlanta Braves - Game Two | Elsa/GettyImages

The Philadelphia Phillies signed Trea Turner in December 2022 to an 11-year, $300 million contract. Turner got off to a slow start in his Phillies tenure, and it has been blinding some Phillies fans to a fantastic 2025 season that he has put on display.

It's no secret that he had a slow start in 2023, his first season with the ball club, and it even took a giant standing ovation from the fan base to revive his play. It worked, and since then, Philadelphia has seen a different player. In his 2024 season, he was an All-Star player. In 2025, he is on pace for some career numbers, all while it does not seem like fans are realizing the extent of the season he is having. 

Phillies fans are starting to take notice and defend Trea Turner's incredible season

Turner is on pace to break his season total in hits with over 200, per MLB.com's Paul Casella, while also hitting the 40 stolen base mark for the first time since the 2018 season, yet he is still being underappreciated.

Fans are starting to take notice and come to Turner's defense, that the Phillies' leadoff hitter has earned over the course of the season.

The Phillies asked Tuner to adjust his game, and the shortstop has done that and more. He has his highest batting average since the 2021 season and on-base percentage since that same year. He is stealing bases again at a high rate, matching his 2024 total already, and the season is not even at the All-Star break yet. 

It finally seems like fans are starting to take notice of the season he is having. Turner has a slash line of .299/.354/.445, while adding 19 stolen bases. He has seen more contact than in years past, with his strikeout percentage down to 15.7 percent, his lowest since 2020.

It's not just Turner's offense, either

Defensively, his fielding percentage sits at .982, his highest in that regard since the 2016 season. Turner has had a fantastic season and continues to get better during his tenure. He will be a large part of any playoff run the Phillies might have come October. 

His improvement has been large this season, picking up for Bryce Harper since the injury that sidelined the Phillies' first baseman. Turner has solidified his spot in the batting order as well after bouncing back and forth between the first and second spots. He has become the team’s everyday leadoff hitter. 

While Turner might not become a 2025 All-Star, as he has a lot of ground to make up in the voting process, sitting in fourth after the second update, he is having a deserving season that is getting overlooked by MLB fans. Turner is fourth in all of baseball and first in the National League with 95 hits.

Phillies fans have started to take notice of Turner’s game from both the offensive and defensive standpoint, as the player once viewed as getting overpaid and having a bad contract is starting to become a fan favorite, and it is well deserved. Fans should take notice of the work the shortstop has put in to get better and continue to work. 

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