There was never any question on how worthy Trea Turner was when he inked his 11-year, 300 million dollar contract in December of the 2022 offseason with the Phillies. Before the MLB season got underway, Philadelphia saw its new star shortstop and Pack Pro represent Team USA in the World Baseball Classic, which was played in March.
Across the seven games he started in the WBC, Turner rode a wave of success, batting a scorching .391 average while hitting five home runs — four of which came in elimination games. Turner enjoyed a signature moment when he obliterated the go-ahead grand slam in the top of the 8th inning quarterfinal game versus Venezuela to put Team USA up 9-7.
In the semifinals versus Cuba, Turner belted another home run in his first at bat to give Team USA a 3-1 lead. Turner hit another blast, a three-run shot, later in the game, which helped Team USA win 14-2. Turner continued to ride the hot streak when he gave Team USA a 1-0 lead in the top of the second inning in the WBC Championship game versus Japan, which allowed Turner to tie the record for most home runs in a single World Baseball Classic tournament with five.
There was no reason to believe that Turner wouldn’t produce in Philadelphia because of his performances in the WBC and with the Dodgers the previous two seasons. However, Turner struggled to replicate this success when the MLB season began.
Turner opened the season in a slump, slashing a career low through 110 games at .235 and was dropped to eighth in the lineup, the lowest since his rookie season. Turner, who was just two years off from his 2021 batting title with the Dodgers and boasting four consecutive years batting .298 or higher, found himself in unfamiliar territory as he was hammered with boos from the home crowd and just couldn’t find his footing in Philadelphia.
Given Turner’s slow start, Philly’s series versus the Kansas City Royals in early August was the moment when the shortstop turned his season around. Phillies fans bound together and decided to give Turner standing ovations before his turns at bat. Turner delivered with an RBI-single in that game, breaking his 0-17 hitting slump he was riding and received a roaring applause from his home crowd.
The next day, Turner went two for four with a go-ahead three-run homer in the 6th inning to lift the Phillies up to a 8-6 lead earning him a much-needed curtain call.
Turner’s series versus the Royals sparked an incredible turnaround. In August alone, Turner hit a season high of .333 average with 26 RBI’s and nine long balls. Turner followed up his breakout August campaign with another great month in September, slashing .299 and smashing seven more home runs.
Turner’s late season heroics ultimately helped the Phillies clinch a National League Wild Card spot. Together, the shortstop and his squad came a win away from the Phillies’ second straight World Series appearance.
Turner went four for seven with two doubles in the two game sweep in the NLWC series versus the Miami Marlins. The Phillies advanced to the National League Division Series where they toppled the number one seeded Atlanta Braves in a best of five series.
Turner made his presence felt offensively and defensively throughout the NLDS. He turned a key double play in the bottom of the eighth inning in the Phillies’ 3-0 game one win. Despite Philly’s gut-wrenching game two loss in Atlanta, the Phillies struck back in large numbers in the 10-2 win in game three, which also included a solo shot by Turner.
Philadelphia won game four with a final score of 3-1 off the heels of three solo shots — one by Turner. Turner and the Phillies knocked out the Braves in four games to advance to the National League Championship Series against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
After going 2-4 with a double in Philadelphia’s game one win, Turner started the scoring in game two with a 421-foot blast, which jump started a 10-0 win. Turner went 2-7 in the next two games of the series, both of which the Phillies lost in Arizona, and also capped a 14-game hitting streak that included 10 playoff games.
Turner and the Phillies snatched a game five victory on the road, despite the Pack Pro going 0-4. However, the bats went cold in the final two games, allowing the Diamondbacks to win the series in seven games — punching their ticket to the World Series.
While Turner and the Phillies came up a game too short, the turnaround Turner had in August and his bat coming alive for the large part of the postseason should not be understated.
Turner has proven he can come up big when the lights are brightest with his World Baseball Classic performance and his .347 slash line in the 2023 playoffs, which included momentum shifting home runs and game saving defensive web gems.
