The Philadelphia Phillies had to pay $300 million to sign shortstop Trea Turner.
It doesn’t take too much baseball knowledge to identify Turner as one of the game’s brightest stars; a man capable of hitting for average and power, with blazing speed, good defense, and a World Series ring.
If you watched the 2023 World Baseball Classic, you also know that Turner had an amazing tournament and his five homers were tops in the event.
The dynamic infielder, however, hasn’t been able to translate his spring success to the regular season yet.
He opened the day with a disappointing .251/.297/.382 line with four home runs and an 81 wRC+ (the league-average offensive performance is 100).
Facing tough Arizona Diamondbacks right-hander Zac Gallen, his prospects of having a good day were not very high.
In fact, he was 0-for-4 with a strikeout until he stepped on the plate against Jose Ruiz with two outs in the ninth inning.
The Phillies were down 5-3 and there was a man on base.
The following happened:
Trea Turner delivers in the clutch. 💪 pic.twitter.com/RxHZigIqAW
— MLB (@MLB) May 24, 2023
Turner finally delivered for the Phillies, with a long home run that tied the game at five runs apiece.
The win probability charts completely flipped in the Phillies’ favor, in large part thanks to Turner.
Alec Bohm went on to win it for Philadelphia with a long single in the bottom of the tenth frame.
The Phils hope this is what Turner needed to kickstart his season and his tenure in Philadelphia.
The team went to the 2022 World Series without him, and they are now expecting him to lead the charge that brings the title to the City of Brotherly Love.
NEXT:
Phillies Star Keeps Failing To Replicate WBC Form
