Trea Turner returned to the starting lineup on Wednesday and was moved back into the leadoff spot for the first time since he was dropped to No. 2 on May 27. Turner went 3-for-5 with a run scored in the Phillies' 12-4 loss at Citizens Bank Park, and his batting average rose from.216 to.223.
Don Mattingly and the Leadoff Move
Don Mattingly made the lineup change that put Turner back at the top of the order on Wednesday. Managers often restore a familiar leadoff presence when seeking to maximize early plate appearances for a veteran, and the Phillies said they will keep playing Turner at shortstop every day and wait for the turnaround.
Trea Turner’s Wednesday Performance
Turner’s 3-for-5 night was the most concrete immediate result: three hits, one run scored, in a game the Phillies lost 12-4 to the Marlins at Citizens Bank Park. That performance erased part of the slide in raw batting average but left the wider season picture largely unchanged.
Trea Turner Seasonal Numbers
Entering Wednesday Turner carried a.595 OPS, the second-worst mark among 22 qualified MLB shortstops, and a.216 average that ranked 139th; the Wednesday game lifted that average to.223. He remains a $300 million player with strong production since 2023: 14.7 fWAR, a.277 batting average, 69 home runs and 325 runs scored, and a.769 OPS across that span.
Those career-level figures explain why the Phillies are reluctant to bench him despite a prolonged slump in the 2026 season. A 3-for-5 boosts counting stats and nudges rate numbers, but sustained recovery requires a run of productive plate appearances rather than a single game.
Turner’s 3-for-5 raised his average by.007 — from.216 to.223 — because batting average is calculated as hits divided by at-bats and the three extra hits in five at-bats increase the season hit total proportionally. OPS is the sum of on-base percentage and slugging; a multi-hit night will lift both components, but computing an exact postgame OPS needs the season totals for on-base and total bases, which are not restated here.
Turner’s past peak provides contrast: he was the only player in the league with an average over.300 when he won the NL batting title the previous year, and he has produced at a top-tier level since 2023. That history is the counterweight to the current slump and the reason the club continues to play him daily at shortstop.
Why Don Mattingly chose Wednesday to return Turner to the leadoff spot — rather than keeping him at No. 2 until a longer sample of improvement — is the immediate roster question facing the Phillies and their fans.
