Can Trea Turner put together a full season and show he's worth the big contract?
By this point, we all know that Trea Turner was only Trea Turner for about two months of the 2023 regular season. After some mighty struggles over the first four months of the season, something clicked for him following the now-famous show of support from the fans.
Philly's got ya, Trea 👏 pic.twitter.com/KRIO03u8sN
— NBC Sports Philadelphia (@NBCSPhilly) August 4, 2023
He crumbled under the pressure of trying to perform up to the expectations that came with the massive 11-year, $300 million deal he signed in the offseason. He hit a pitiful .242 with a .673 OPS through the end of July. This wasn't the Trea Turner anyone was expecting to see in Philly.
This was a career .302 hitter who had racked up 21 home runs, 100 RBI, 101 runs scored, and 27 stolen bases just last season with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Yet, for the first four months of 2023, it didn't look like he could hit the broad side of a barn, as they say.
From Aug. 4, Turner hit .337 with a 1.057 OPS and finished the year with a .266/.320/.459 slash line, 26 home runs, 76 RBI, 102 runs scored, and 30 stolen bases. Respectable counting stats, but not the batting average, on-base, or slugging percentages most had been expecting to see from the two-time All-Star.
Then came the strong start to the playoffs, in which he posted a 1.482 OPS in the Wild Card and a 1.441 OPS in the NLDS. Unfortunately, that was followed by his disappearing act at the end of the NLCS. He had a .636 OPS and finished the season-ending series on a disappointing 0-for-12 skid.
Add on his defensive struggles at short, with the worst season of his career in the field, and the first year didn't live up to the hype or the contract. But Turner still has time to prove that the signing was worth it for a Phillies team that expects him to help take them back to and win the World Series.
He'll turn 31 in the middle of the 2024 season and will have to show he still has all the tools to play up to his $27 million annual salary.
Can the real Trea Turner please stand up?
NEXT: Can Bryce Harper prove himself at first base and cement his Phillies legacy?