Will Trea Turner head to Philadelphia or can the Dodgers keep him in SoCal?
With four elite shortstops on the market this off-season, it seems like every team in MLB will be sniffing around. But the Phillies seem to be closing in.
Trea Turner is an elite shortstop. There are no two ways about it. A middle infielder of his caliber in normally on offer each season and it creates a swirl of interest around the league. This season, however, it is a bit different.
Turner is one of four elite shortstops on the free agency market and the whole table could be flipped depending on where each of them land.
With rumors and speculation linking Xander Bogaerts, Carlos Correa, and Dansby Swanson to at least 11 different teams, it seems like Trea Turner might be the first of the Fantastic Four to zero in on a home.
The Philadelphia Phillies are seen as the organization in pole position to bring Turner into the fold. He is firm friends with ex-Washington team mate Bryce Harper and the two have reportedly been keen to relink. Another link for bringing Turner to Philly is the fact that their spring training facility is in Florida, reportedly an absolute must for the Palm Beach native.
Of course, the Phillies aren’t in this hunt alone, and San Diego are looking both Turner and Bogaerts with the Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reporting that Padres general manager A.J. Preller “fancies” Turner of the two.
Where does this leave the Dodgers? Of course, they will also be in the hunt for Turner’s services, or failing that, they must surely be in the race for one of the other three big names.
After Turner turned down the $19.65 million qualifying offer that Los Angeles extended, the expected contract that he will be in line for would be in the nine-year, $275 million range.
Word around the campfire is that while the Dodgers are still in contact with Turner, they have perhaps cooled on the idea of keeping him in Dodger Blue, and the rumor is that they are eying up Carlos Correa. While this may be a tough sell to the Dodger faithful, it is an acknowledgement that Turner’s preference for the East Coast will almost certainly see him head that way.
And if you were a betting man, you should lay a line on the Phillies as his landing spot. They look for all the world to have the inside track.