Trea Turner to miss extended time with hamstring injury
Trea Turner is going to miss some time.
He was placed on the 10-day injured list with a left hamstring strain prior to Saturday’s game against the San Francisco Giants. Kody Clemens was recalled from Triple-A Lehigh Valley to take his spot on the roster.
A visibly frustrated Turner told reporters inside the Phillies clubhouse on Saturday that he will miss “six weeks or so.” He said he knew something was wrong as soon as it happened.
“When it happened, I knew exactly what happened when it happened,” Turner said. “Felt real limited after the slide. Felt like I played it off decent, but even just walking back to the dugout, in the dugout, I kind of knew something was wrong.”
He suffered the injury as he scored from second on a ball to the backstop. His hustle on the wild pitch ended up being the winning run in the Phillies’ 4-3 victory over San Francisco, but it came at a significant cost.
Turner previously suffered a left hamstring strain that kept him out for 11 days in April 2017. All of his other IL stints were the result of broken bones from a hit-by-pitch.
It’s unfamiliar territory for Turner, but he’s optimistic in his ability to crush the rehab and possibly push the timeline.
“The broken bones are tough because you just sit and wait,” Turner said. “You can’t do anything. That’s kind of the only reason why I’m a little optimistic with this. It’s more just like as you gain strength and get healthier, you can kind of ramp up. It kind of depends on me and not just sitting around and waiting for a bone to heal.”
Edmundo Sosa is batting eighth and playing shortstop for the Phillies in Saturday’s game. Manager Rob Thomson hopes to get Bryson Stott, who came up as a shortstop and spent most of 2022 at the position, some reps before putting him back there. The Phillies could not do any pregame infield work outside on Saturday due to rain.
Turner is confident that his double play partner will step up defensively in his absence.
“He was [a Gold Glove finalist] at second base, obviously that transfers over to the other side,” Turner said of Stott. “Completing of plays and getting outs, he’s great at that. I have all the confidence in the world in his ability.”
There’s a good chance that natural second baseman Whit Merrifield will get the majority of reps at second base when Stott is at shortstop.
J.T. Realmuto is replacing Turner in the No. 2 spot in the lineup for now. Thomson preferred to keep the red-hot Bohm where he’s at behind Bryce Harper in the cleanup spot.
But the onus is on Bohm, Realmuto and the rest of the Phillies’ crop of right-handed bats to step up offensively with Turner out. There’s no replacing Turner, who is batting .343 with an .852 OPS.
This version of Turner the Phillies were getting was on pace for another 6 or 7-WAR season.
“It’s one of the best players in the game you’re losing,” Thomson said. “But we’ve been through this before. People just pick it up. That’s why you got a team.”
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