PHILADELPHIA -- For now, Trea Turner is the Phillies’ shortstop.
How long he plays there is up to him.
Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski spoke on Thursday morning at Citizens Bank Park for the first time since the team’s loss to Atlanta in Game 3 of the NL Wild Card Series on Oct. 1. The Phillies made the postseason for a fifth consecutive year, but the finish could not be considered anything less than a disappointment. Improvements are required, including defensively.
Dombrowski said on Thursday that Turner must play a better shortstop in 2027, or he will change positions. The two met for a couple hours on Tuesday at the ballpark to talk about it.
“We were very clear,” Dombrowski said. “He knows he has to be better at shortstop. And I told him that it's really mandatory that he’s like that. He feels he can play, and if he plays shortstop like he did in ’25, he can play shortstop. But if he plays it like he did in ’26, he can't. And he totally understands that.”
Turner had already returned home to Florida for the offseason, but flew back to Philadelphia to meet with Dombrowski. Those familiar with the meeting called it a productive session.
Turner had -10 Outs Above Average in 2026, which ranked 39th out of 42 qualified shortstops in MLB. Defensive metrics like OAA and Defensive Runs Saved are frequently critiqued and questioned by on-field personnel, including players, but even the eye test showed that Turner struggled defensively.
He posted +17 OAA in 2025 (tied for third out of 37 qualified shortstops), following -2 OAA in ’24 (tied for 29th out of 40) and -6 OAA in ’23 (tied for 30th out of 35).
If Turner doesn’t improve, the Phillies could move him to the outfield, although Turner prefers to stay in the infield. Bryson Stott played shortstop for the ‘22 NL champions. He is an option to take Turner’s place, but Dombrowski also mentioned Phillies prospects Aidan Miller (Philadelphia's No. 2 and MLB's No. 59 overall prospect) and Bryan Rincon (Philadelphia's No. 4 and MLB's No. 96 prospect) as candidates, although they are more likely to be early-to-midseason options than Opening Day possibilities.
COMPLETE PHILLIES PROSPECT COVERAGE
The Phillies could acquire outside help, too.
The Phillies on Wednesday fired infield coach Bobby Dickerson. Former Mets manager Carlos Mendoza has been hired to take his place. (Mendoza will also coach third base.) Mendoza will be immediately challenged, considering Turner has so much on his plate. Turner not only will be under the microscope defensively every play -- each error in Spring Training and early in the season will be dissected and overanalyzed -- but Turner will be trying to rebound from the worst offensive season of his career, too.
He batted .242 with 19 home runs, 58 RBIs, a .675 OPS and an 81 OPS+.
“I can't control the daily banter about what takes place,” Dombrowski said. “He's not the first player I've ever been around that was surrounded by that. He's a smart guy. He knows he needs to get better, and I think he'll deal with it. But he's got a long time to be here.”
Turner has seven years remaining on an 11-year, $300 million contract he signed in Dec. 2022.
“The reason we signed him in the beginning compared to some others, not only was he a good player, but we thought that he had the ability to continue to be a good player for a longer time period because of his quick-twitch muscles, the type of athlete he is, what he possesses,” Dombrowski said. “I mean, he led the league in hitting last year, so I was surprised myself on the offensive year that he had and that we weren't able to get out of it -- as he was. So it's up to us to try to fix all those types of things.
“We’ve already given [Turner] some information ourselves that we think can be helpful. Of course, Carlos will be responsible for working with him. … We need to leave it that he is very willing to do, if he doesn't play shortstop, what is best for the Philadelphia Phillies organization. So that's how we left it with him, and he's determined to show us that he can play it. And I said, ‘You have to show it. You cannot play shortstop like [you] did defensively in ’26, going into ’27.'”