Trea Turner has been placed on the 10-day injured list by the Phillies because of a strain in his left hamstring. Turner’s position on the active roster was filled by infielder Kody Clemens, who was called up from Triple-A.
The decision is understandable given that Turner’s injury required him to leave the Phillies’ 4-3 victory over the Giants early on Friday. Turner was on second base when catcher Tom Murphy’s glove caught a ball that Jordan Hicks threw to batter Bryce Harper in the fourth inning, scoring a passed ball. Turner cost himself a run in the top of the fifth when he was replaced at shortstop by Edmundo Sosa despite racing all the way to third base and home to score on the play.
Turner has started the 2024 season far better than he did in 2023, when he signed an 11-year, $300 million contract with Philadelphia. Turner’s 2023 start was notoriously poor. Shortstop is making a hit.343/.392/.460 with 27 runs scored, 10 steals in 11 tries, and two home runs. a.421 BABIP that is significantly higher than his and a.379 wOBA.330 xwOBA show that Turner has had some luck in putting up his numbers, despite the fact that his superior speed has consistently produced high BABIP outcomes.
The Phillies have a league-high 22 wins thanks in large part to Turner. The Phillies will never be able to replicate that output, so their best hope is that Turner’s injury is not too serious and he can make a speedy and thorough recovery. In Turner’s absence, Sosa will play shortstop the majority of the time, with Clemens taking up Sosa’s position as the team’s utility man. Whit Merrifield is starting to struggle at the plate, so Philadelphia might try using Bryson Stott at shortstop and Merrifield more frequently at second base.