Trea Turner has been one of the best players in baseball this season and despite having an integral role in Los Angeles Dodgers tying a franchise record in wins, he has not been receiving warranted recognition in the National League MVP race.
Turner led the NL in WAR, batting average and stolen bases, while also finishing third in runs, sixth in wRC+ and wOBA, eighth in on-base percentage, and 18th in home runs. But despite all that, MVP attention has gone to Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Bryce Harper, San Diego Padres shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr., and Washington Nationals outfielder Juan Soto.
“I don’t know why Trea isn’t getting spoken about in the MVP stuff as much,” Walker Buehler said earlier this week.
“He’s had an extremely special year and had a year that not many players can have. You can hit 100 homers or whatever, but Trea is a special player and a game-changing player. I think Trea Turner needs to be on the minds of some people.”
Turner also became the seventh player in Dodgers franchise history, and the first in 58 years, to win the batting title after hitting .328. While he has always been a high average player, he took his ability to another level with the Dodgers.
“I know it wasn’t easy changing teams. I know there was a short stint with the Padres, but the Nationals were the only organization he knew,” manager Dave Roberts said. “So to get traded in the middle of a season was difficult. I know coming here with Max helped a lot; their wives are close and they’re obviously very good friends.
“For him to continue to stay the course, perform, do a position change and ultimately win a batting title, it’s huge. I believe average still does matter and kind of goes with on-base and driving in runs. He’s an MVP-caliber player. We’re lucky to have him.”
Turner finished his season hitting .328/.375/.536 with a 142 wRC+, .386 wOBA, 28 home runs, 107 runs scored, 77 runs batted in, 32 stolen bases and 6.9 wins above replacement in 148 games.
Turner named NL Player of the Week
Turner finished his strong regular season by being named the NL Player of the Week for Sept. 27-Oct. 3.
The dynamic infield started all six games and hit .458/.480/.917 with eight runs scored, two doubles, three home runs, 11 RBI and one stolen base.
Two of Turner’s homers were grand slams during the final series against the Milwaukee Brewers. He became the first Dodger player with two grand slams in a three-game stretch since Mike Piazza accomplished the feat on April 9 and 10, 1998.
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