The Phillies are keeping Trea Turner at shortstop for now, but the message coming out of the club’s delayed season-ending press conference was unmistakable: 2027 has to look a lot more like 2025 than 2026.
President of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski didn’t dodge the issue. After a rough season and another playoff disappointment, Philadelphia is heading into the offseason with plenty of uncertainty, and Turner’s defense at shortstop sits right near the center of it. Dombrowski made it plain that the position is Turner’s to hold only if the performance improves.
“He knows he has to be better at shortstop,” Dombrowski stated. “I have told him that is mandatory.
If he plays shortstop like he did in '25, then he can play shortstop. But if he plays like he did in '26, he can't.”
Turner’s 2026 season was a grind from start to finish. He hit .242/.297/.387 and posted -17 DRS and -10 OAA, numbers that reflected just how far things slipped.
Among 42 qualified shortstops, his OAA ranked fourth worst, a huge drop from 2025, when he put up a 17 OAA, the fourth-best mark in MLB. His OPS also fell by 137 points.
That’s why the conversation about a move off shortstop isn’t going away. It isn’t locked in, but the possibility is there if Turner’s game keeps trending the wrong way.
Dombrowski said Turner was informed that the bar is higher now, and Turner, for his part, is determined to show the Phillies he can answer the challenge. For the moment, the club is leaving him at shortstop, though Dombrowski did discuss potential position changes with him, and Turner prefers to remain in the infield.
Turner may not be the only regular whose defensive home could shift next season. Dombrowski also said the Phillies want to move Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber around more to help ease the wear and tear.
“We'd like to get Kyle playing some first base next year to get [Harper] and [Schwarber] off their feet a little more as they age,” Dombrowski said. “We estimate [Schwarber] could play 30 games at [first base] next year. Bryce is willing to play the outfield some.”
The coaching staff is changing, too. Philadelphia fired longtime infield coach Bobby Dickerson and hitting coach Kevin Long, and Dombrowski said Thursday that the Phillies hired former New York Mets manager Carlos Mendoza. Mendoza will work as the team’s infield and third-base coach, giving Turner, Harper and Schwarber a new voice as they head into 2027.
With Turner under contract for seven more seasons, the Phillies are trying to squeeze as much value as possible out of their $300 million shortstop as he moves deeper into his deal. Whether that means a cleaner defensive year at shortstop or, eventually, a move elsewhere, the organization’s stance is clear: the 2025 version of Turner is the standard.
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