The First Glimpses Of Trea Turner In A Phillies Uniform Were Glorious
This weekend, the Philadelphia Phillies played their first couple games of their Spring Training schedule down in Florida, starting with a split squad matchup on Saturday with the New York Yankees in Clearwater and the Detroit Tigers in Lakeland, followed by a Sunday home game against the Minnesota Twins. Saturday was a bit of a hodgepodge of Major Leaguers and non-roster invitees that most people never knew existed; that’s to be expected though in Spring Training. Sunday, though, with the Phillies all in the same place, we got to see our first peek of what this team could look close to on opening day. Kyle Schwarber, JT Realmuto, Nick Castellanos, and Bryson Stott were all in the top 5 spots of the Phils’ lineup, but the most exciting name was situated at the top of the card yesterday afternoon.
Trea Turner officially made the debut we have waited for since he signed back on December 5th… ok, so not the MAIN debut that we have been waiting for; that will come on March 30th against the Texas Rangers. This was, though, the first chance we have gotten to see the reigning All-MLB Shortstop in a Phillies uniform. It went just about as expected. Turner started out the game with a humpback liner to center, then stole 2nd base during Kyle Schwarber’s at bat. JT Realmuto then singled to score the speedy Turner easily. Drink it in, folks. That is how effortless the Philadelphia Phillies offense is going to look this season, and that’s without the return of Bryce Harper even being considered. Turner ended the game 2-3 with 2 singles, an RBI, and a run scored, which is a textbook stat line (probably 1 at bat short of a regular game) for what you can expect for the Phils’ new star. Don’t forget the stolen base either, which represents what will be a big part of what Turner brings to his new squad this year.
Yes, I know it’s one spring training game against guys that probably won’t be playing much for the Twins at the Major League level. I’m not handing Trea Turner an MVP trophy just yet, but it’s really fun to get a glimpse of the talent level that this guy is going to bring to Philly for the next decade. When Bryce Harper returns to the lineup, and this team is at full strength, they are going to be a force to be reckoned with in the National League, and in all of baseball. A huge reason for that is going to be the play of the best shortstop in baseball. We’re going to need to figure out another alternative to JT Realmuto’s BCIB moniker, because now, the Phillies have another player who is tops at their position. It’s going to be a fun summer in Philadelphia.
