PHILADELPHIA -- Trea Turner was not only back in the Phillies' lineup on Wednesday afternoon against the Marlins, but he was back in the leadoff spot.
Turner was out of the lineup on Tuesday after being hit by a pitch on his right wrist on Monday night. He had been hitting No. 2 in the lineup since May 27, when interim manager Don Mattingly bumped him down a spot amid his season-long struggles.
Turner homered in each of his first two games following the switch, but that didn't prove to be the spark the Phillies had hoped. He hit .203 (15-for-74) with a .554 OPS in his 18 games out of the No. 2 spot.
Turner entered Wednesday just 1-for-16 (.063) with six strikeouts over his past four games. But with Kyle Schwarber hitting second in Turner's absence Tuesday, Mattingly felt the series finale was the right time to transition back to what he views as the Phillies' optimal lineup.
"I just kind of really wanted to keep Schwarb in the two, and always wanted to get back to Trea," Mattingly said. "The reason he was there in the first place is he's able to run up there. If he gets on behind Schwarb, he's not able to run, so I always wanted him there. I just think the day off yesterday gives me the opportunity to kind of do it naturally."
Of course, Turner's numbers aren't exactly what you want out of a leadoff hitter. Overall this season, he's hitting just .216 after hitting .304 and winning the NL batting title last year. His .594 OPS ranked 152nd out of 157 qualified hitters entering Wednesday.
But this move is about a lot more than just Turner.
There's obviously the running factor that Mattingly mentioned above, but perhaps more important is the Phillies also want to prevent opposing teams from taking the bat out of Schwarber's hands.
Since moving to the leadoff spot, Schwarber had come up three times with two outs, a runner on base with first base open and the score within two runs.
The results of those three plate appearances? Intentional walk, intentional walk, intentional walk.
Turner's results following those intentional walks? Flyout, strikeout, strikeout.
Schwarber had not been intentionally walked once this season prior to the lineup swap -- and, obviously, he's never been intentionally walked hitting in front of Bryce Harper.
"You do have Harp behind you when you're sitting in that two hole, and there's something to be said for that," Mattingly said. "Knowing you got to get to Harp if you're not throwing strikes."
Needless to say, the Phillies would prefer Schwarber to see as many strikes as possible. He not only leads the Majors with 25 home runs, but his .942 OPS is 79 points higher than any other Phillie.
Next on that list isn't Harper. It's Brandon Marsh, who's hitting .324 with an .863 OPS.
Marsh stepped into the leadoff spot in Turner's absence on Tuesday and went 1-for-3 with a homer, two RBIs, two runs, a walk and a stolen base. But Marsh was back in the cleanup spot behind Harper for Wednesday's finale.
Why not stick with him in the leadoff spot? Well, it goes back to that same protection concept.
"[Marsh] kind of ends up being protection for Harp," Mattingly said. " ... So you want to try to keep it where guys like Harp and Schwarber are getting pitched to as much as you can. So you use guys in different spots for different reasons."
Plus, it's not likely to be a viable long-term solution to have three straight left-handers atop the lineup in Marsh, Schwarber and Harper. Even that aside, moving Turner down in the lineup won't magically fix his offensive struggles.
And while the Phillies (40-33) have battled their way back into the postseason picture and entered Wednesday a season-high seven games above .500, they know they will likely need Turner to find his swing for the club to make a deep run.
Simply stacking Marsh, Schwarber and Harper atop the lineup doesn't exactly bode well for the rest of the lineup if Turner still isn't producing lower in the order.
"He can be a serious catalyst with what he does on the bases, and the pressure that puts on pitchers," Mattingly said. "So your vision for your best team is with Trea at the top or the top couple. ... If we're going to get to where we need to go, he needs to get going.
"So I'm trying to work towards that vision, but also win games as we go."