Trea Turner is on the move, as usual.
The Phillies' shortstop has been known for his fleet feet since his days as a prospect. Now, as he enters his 12th big league season and fourth in Philadelphia, he is racing toward another speed-related achievement. The 32-year-old swiped his 300th career base last July and finished 2025 at 315, which puts him in high standing.
Most career stolen bases, active players
1. Starling Marte: 361
2. Billy Hamilton: 326
3. Jose Altuve: 325
4. Turner: 315
5. José Ramírez: 287
Marte, 37, remains a free agent, one who stole only seven bases in 98 games in 2025. Hamilton briefly played in the Minors last year, keeping his “active” status alive, but he hasn’t suited up in the Majors since '23. Neither of those players looks like a threat to significantly boost his totals moving forward.
But if the question is whether Turner will take over the active lead in 2026, then Marte’s status is the key. If Marte plays, it will be tough. Even if he doesn’t steal a base, Marte maintaining active status would force Turner to steal 47 bases to pass him. Not only is that one more than his career high (46 in '17 with the Nationals), but Turner hasn’t topped 36 as a member of the Phillies, showing restraint in how often he takes off. In this event, any change atop the leaderboard likely would have to wait for '27.
However, should Marte enter retirement, Altuve would be the only player standing in the way of Turner taking over the top spot on the active list. In his younger days, Altuve stole 30-plus bases six times in a row, including leading the AL in 2014 and ‘15. But he has averaged just 14 per season since 2021 (including 10 in 155 games in ‘25) as his sprint speed has declined rapidly, down to just the 36th percentile in 2025.
Even if Altuve got back to 15 steals in 2026, Turner would need only 26 to pass him for the top spot. That’s an easily attainable figure, as long as he stays reasonably healthy. (In 2024, when a left hamstring strain limited him to 121 games, Turner swiped just 19 bags.)
Why is Turner in position to become the active leader? Here are a few reasons:
1. He’s extremely fast … still
Last season, MLB.com’s Mike Petriello took a deep dive into Turner and the Twins’ Byron Buxton and the incredible way in which they have maintained their standing as elite speedsters as they have aged. The short version is this: When Statcast debuted in 2015, those were the two fastest players in baseball, by sprint speed. All this time later, with their bodies having endured not only the natural aging process but also the pounding of a decade in the bigs, they were basically still there -- or at least right behind the much younger Bobby Witt Jr.
It’s an incredible feat and one that only comes about from tremendously hard work as well as being, in the words of teammate Bryce Harper, “genetically … just a freak.” However it happens, Turner literally has not lost a step over the years.
2. He’s efficient, too
This summer, Carlos Beltrán will be inducted into the Hall of Fame. One of the multitalented center fielder’s many impressive qualities as a player was that he combined basestealing volume (361) with superb efficiency (86.4% success rate). Nobody in baseball history has matched that combination of quantity and quality -- but Turner is close.
Entering 2026, Turner has stolen his 315 bases in just 368 chances, an 85.6% success rate. That includes a perfect season in 2023, which was part of a streak of 41 straight successful attempts. No other player with 300 career steals has a success rate of 85% or better. (Another Hall of Famer, Tim Raines, was close: 808 steals, at 84.7%.) In other words, Turner isn’t just fast. He picks his spots and he knows what he’s doing when he goes.
3. He gives himself opportunities
You can’t steal second if you’re not on first, to state the obvious. And Turner gets there a lot. That 2024 hamstring strain aside, he’s stayed quite healthy over the past several years. The Phillies bat Turner at or near the top of the lineup, ensuring he comes to the plate a lot. And he hits for high averages, including two batting titles in the past five seasons, which gives him solid OBPs despite below-average walk rates. That’s backed up by Turner’s expected batting average, which ranked in the 82nd percentile in 2025.
Going back to 2018, Turner ranks 16th in the Majors in games played (1,068), ninth in plate appearances (4,791), second in hits (1,300) and 11th in times on base, including via error (1,707). Those frequent chances mean the steals can keep on coming … all the way until Turner is the king among active players.