The Los Angeles Dodgers secured the proverbial hot corner this offseason by re-signing Justin Turner to a four-year, $64 million contract. It marked the first time in Turner’s career he was a free agent.
Not only did the Dodgers see the return of a Gold-Glove caliber third baseman, but also a stalwart in the middle of their lineup.
Although the 32-year-old acknowledged the sense of accomplishment that comes with being coveted by other clubs, Turner couldn’t pass on the opportunity to remain with the Dodgers, in large part due to the culture and desire to bring a World Series to Los Angeles.
Due to his contributions on both sides of the ball, before last season MLB Network’s The Shredder ranked Turner as the fifth-best player at his position. Even with a successful first year as an everyday third baseman, Turner is ranked in the same spot by The Shredder heading into the 2017 season.
MLB Network’s Brian Kenny and Mike Lowell also listed Turner in their top 10, with Kenny ranking him seventh while Lowell put Turner at No. 9.
Lowell was impressed by Turner’s production and ability to play on a daily basis in 2016. “The question mark for me was with all the at-bats, 500-600 at-bat-season all at third base, how was he going to perform? With a resounding yes,” Lowell said.
Last season Turner batted .275/.339/.493 with 34 doubles, 27 home runs, 90 RBIs and a 124 OPS+ over 151 games. He set a career high in doubles, finished tied with Yasmani Grandal for the team lead in home runs, and tied with Adrian Gonzalez for most RBIs.
Since coming to Los Angeles prior the start of the 2014 season, Turner ranks second among third baseman in batting average (.296), third in on-base percentage (.364), fifth in slugging percentage (.492) and third in WRC+ (138).
Unlike last season, Turner will be coming into the 2017 completely healthy, so look for him to have another productive campaign for the Dodgers. Turner was recently ranked the No. 8 third baseman by ESPN’s Buster Olney.
