{"id":31266,"date":"2026-05-30T03:46:19","date_gmt":"2026-05-30T03:46:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/2026\/05\/30\/time-to-talk-about-trea-turner-do-the-phillies-have-a-brandon-marsh-decision\/"},"modified":"2026-05-30T03:46:19","modified_gmt":"2026-05-30T03:46:19","slug":"time-to-talk-about-trea-turner-do-the-phillies-have-a-brandon-marsh-decision","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/2026\/05\/30\/time-to-talk-about-trea-turner-do-the-phillies-have-a-brandon-marsh-decision\/","title":{"rendered":"Time to talk about Trea Turner? Do the Phillies have a Brandon Marsh decision?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"article-body\">\n<div class=\"flex border-b border-solid items-center justify-between mb-6 pb-5 border-b-neutral-light-charcoal-gray\">\n<div class=\"relative flex items-center gap-2 self-stretch \"><button class=\"audio-paywall-trigger bg-transparent flex gap-2 items-center cursor-pointer\" aria-label=\"play button\"><span class=\"font-grot10 text-3.5 font-semibold not-italic leading-4 text-primary\">Listen to article<!-- --> <span aria-hidden=\"true\">\u2022<\/span>\u00a0<time>0:00<!-- --> min<\/time><\/span><\/button><button type=\"button\" aria-label=\"Feedback\" class=\"bg-transparent cursor-pointer flex\" aria-expanded=\"false\"\/><audio><track kind=\"captions\" class=\"hidden\"\/><\/audio><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"inq-p text-primary  \"><i>Questions we should be asking but aren\u2019t \u2026<\/i><\/p>\n<div class=\"cursor-pointer relative w-fit mt-6 mb-0 font-inquirer-headline text-primary\">\n<h3 class=\"block font-semibold mt-8 mb-4 text-5 leading-5 sm:text-8 sm:leading-8 lg:text-9 lg:leading-9\">Do the <a class=\"no-underline text-blue-mid hover:shadow-lightmode\" data-link-type=\"article-body\" href=\"https:\/\/www.inquirer.com\/phillies\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"https:\/\/www.inquirer.com\/phillies\/\">Phillies<\/a> need to make a long-term decision on Brandon Marsh before the trade deadline? <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"inq-p text-primary  \">I\u2019m not suggesting the Phillies would ever get to a point where they\u2019d be sellers in the traditional sense. Even if they did, Marsh probably wouldn\u2019t be a traditional trade candidate. As much as he has improved, and as hot as he can get for stretches, he isn\u2019t the kind of stretch-run impact bat that contenders covet in late July. Remember, he is 2-for-26 in his last two postseasons. So why are we even talking about this? <\/p>\n<p class=\"inq-p text-primary  \">Well, the Phillies could be one of those contenders entering late July coveting an impact bat. And, as noted above, Marsh will be a free agent after next season. If trading him can help facilitate a deal for a hitter whose profile better fits the Phillies\u2019 circumstances, then <a class=\"relative z-1 text-blue-mid hover:shadow-lightmode\" data-link-type=\"article-body\" href=\"https:\/\/www.inquirer.com\/topic\/dave-dombrowski\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Dave Dombrowski<\/a> may have to take his medicine. His formula is clearly flawed as far as lineup composition goes. It won\u2019t be any less of an issue this postseason, assuming the Phillies make it there. <\/p>\n<p class=\"inq-p type-interstitial text-primary\"><b>\u00bb READ MORE:<!-- --> <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-link-type=\"interstitial\" href=\"https:\/\/www.inquirer.com\/phillies\/rhys-hoskins-guardians-bryce-harper-aaron-nola-don-mattingly-20260522.html\" class=\"no-underline text-blue-mid hover:shadow-lightmode\">Rhys Hoskins\u2019 injury was a sliding door moment in Phillies history. And it still \u2018kind of eats at\u2019 Bryce Harper.<\/a><\/b><\/p>\n<p class=\"inq-p text-primary  \">If somewhere out there was a righthanded Marsh, the Phillies would be thrilled to switch that one for this one. The trade deadline is never that easy. A more likely scenario would be a team like the Rays, who have an acute need in the outfield, a tight budget, and an affinity for non-rental players who are on the upswing. If the Rays were willing to trade prospects that the Phillies could then flip to a seller for an impact bat, that could make some sense. After a decade of Mike Trout speculation from Phillies fans, we\u2019ve finally arrived at a trade deadline where Mr. Millville is a realistic target. He and the Twins\u2019 Byron Buxton are a couple of hot-hitting righthanded bats who will surely be on a lot of teams\u2019 radars. I would expect the Phillies to be one of those teams. <\/p>\n<p class=\"inq-p text-primary  \">The calculus depends on two things. The first is the Phillies\u2019 five-year plan. As noted above, Marsh, 28, will be a free agent after next season. Dombrowski can claim a win in the trade that saw him ship catching prospect Logan O\u2019Hoppe to the Angels for Marsh in 2022. But are the Phillies really going to be in a position to pay Marsh what the market will bear, especially if Marsh kicks it up another gear?<\/p>\n<p class=\"inq-p text-primary  \">Which brings us to the second consideration. Marsh\u2019s value \u2014 trade-wise, and career earnings-wise \u2014 will depend a lot on what happens over the next month-plus. <\/p>\n<p class=\"inq-p text-primary  \">Marsh has come back to earth a bit over the last couple of weeks. On May 10, he was hitting .353 with an .893 OPS. Going into Wednesday\u2019s game, those numbers were down to .326 and .836, courtesy of a 12-for-48 skid in which he has struck out 14 times with just two walks. That\u2019s not to say his improvement isn\u2019t real. More that he is still a version of who he has always been, albeit improved. <\/p>\n<p class=\"inq-p text-primary  \">All the talk of Marsh being a new guy for more than a year tended to skirt past the streakiness. That so-called year included a 25-game stretch where he struck out 22 times in 78 at-bats with a .586 OPS between late June and late July, and a 17-game stretch in August where he went 7-for-45 with a .404 OPS. In the 11 games in between, Marsh hit 16-for-31 with 10 extra-base hits and four home runs. Look at Marsh\u2019s numbers since May of last year and the hot stretches do a lot of the heavy lifting.<\/p>\n<p><h3 class=\"block font-semibold mt-8 mb-4 text-5 leading-5 sm:text-8 sm:leading-8 lg:text-9 lg:leading-9\">Is Trea Turner officially a problem yet? <\/h3>\n<\/p>\n<p class=\"inq-p text-primary  \">I generally try to avoid being the guy who rallies the troops to pile on an underperforming player. This is particularly true in baseball, which is one of the more difficult individual endeavors in professional sports and also one of the more personal. The boos smack a little different when a guy is standing at home plate by himself and the closest teammate is at least 90 feet away. So don\u2019t look at this as excoriation of Turner. Rather, it\u2019s a defense of guys like <a class=\"relative z-1 text-blue-mid hover:shadow-lightmode\" data-link-type=\"article-body\" href=\"https:\/\/www.inquirer.com\/topic\/alec-bohm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Alec Bohm<\/a> and <a class=\"relative z-1 text-blue-mid hover:shadow-lightmode\" data-link-type=\"article-body\" href=\"https:\/\/www.inquirer.com\/topic\/bryson-stott\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Bryson Stott<\/a> and, to a lesser extent, Adolis Garc\u00eda and <a class=\"relative z-1 text-blue-mid hover:shadow-lightmode\" data-link-type=\"article-body\" href=\"https:\/\/www.inquirer.com\/topic\/jt-realmuto\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">J.T. Realmuto<\/a>. A backhanded defense, sure. Still, a defense. Of Bohm in particular. I don\u2019t think it\u2019s an exaggeration to say that No. 1 atop a plurality of fan\/pundit wish lists is to trade Bohm for a righty-hitting third baseman who does the things that people have long been waiting for Bohm to do. <\/p>\n<div class=\" mt-4 rounded w-full border&#10;          border-solid border-gray-mid-neutral border-1\">\n<div class=\"p-4\">\n<div class=\"flex items-start gap-2 sm:flex-row\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"24px\" height=\"24px\" src=\"https:\/\/www.inquirer.com\/pf\/resources\/images\/I_circle_black.png?d=1335\" alt=\"Inquirer logo\"\/><\/p>\n<p class=\" flex-1 text-primary font-semibold leading-6 text-6 font-inquirer-headline\">David Murphy alerts<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"custom-cta-newsletter-form\" class=\"mb-4\">\n<p class=\" text-secondary text-4 mt-1 font-grot10 italic leading-4.5\">Weekly<\/p>\n<p id=\"cta-description\" class=\" text-primary mt-2 text-4 sm:text-4.5&#10;          leading-5.5 sm:leading-7 font-normal font-grot10\">Get David Murphy\u2019s clear-eyed analysis and fresh perspective on the biggest stories in Philly sports.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"inq-p text-primary  \">No doubt, he was brutal for the first five weeks of the season, with a pitcherlike .433 OPS through 37 games. And even though he has pushed that number up with a sizzling 16-game stretch (.968 OPS, eight extra-base hits, four homers in 64 plate appearances), he continues to carry an inordinate amount of the weight of the Phillies\u2019 teamwide struggles at the plate. No, he isn\u2019t your ideal cleanup or five-hole hitter. But he wouldn\u2019t need to be if the guy at the top of the order was producing the way most $300 million players are expected to produce. Instead, Turner carried a .626 OPS that was only 23 points higher than Bohm. From an economics standpoint, Turner is the Phillies\u2019 biggest offensive problem, and it isn\u2019t particularly close. <\/p>\n<p class=\"inq-p type-interstitial text-primary\"><b>\u00bb READ MORE:<!-- --> <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-link-type=\"interstitial\" href=\"https:\/\/www.inquirer.com\/phillies\/kyle-schwarber-ryan-howard-comparison-home-run-all-time-major-league-list-20260519.html\" class=\"no-underline text-blue-mid hover:shadow-lightmode\">Kyle Schwarber is peak Ryan Howard, and that\u2019s a compliment to both<\/a><\/b><\/p>\n<p class=\"inq-p text-primary  \">All the usual disclaimers apply. We\u2019re still at a point of the schedule where, a few months from now, you can look back at a game log and be surprised that a player struggled for a bit in the early going. Alex Bregman has a .699 OPS. Bo Bichette\u2019s is worse than Bohm\u2019s. <a class=\"relative z-1 text-blue-mid hover:shadow-lightmode\" data-link-type=\"article-body\" href=\"https:\/\/www.inquirer.com\/topic\/nick-castellanos\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Nick Castellanos<\/a> has been better than Steven Kwan. There are a lot of other mistakes the Phillies could have made with Turner\u2019s money, assuming we\u2019re judging things on the first two months of 2026. <\/p>\n<p class=\"inq-p text-primary  \">But if we\u2019re going to blame, let\u2019s make sure we distribute it proportionately. I wouldn\u2019t be surprised if therein lies the root of <a class=\"relative z-1 text-blue-mid hover:shadow-lightmode\" data-link-type=\"article-body\" href=\"https:\/\/www.inquirer.com\/topic\/bryce-harper\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Bryce Harper<\/a>\u2019s reaction to questions about his eliteness. It\u2019s about proportionality, man. Turner, who makes $2 million more than Harper annually, is 12-for-57 with a whopping two extra-base hits and seven walks in the Phillies\u2019 last three postseason series, dating back to the NLCS loss to the Diamondbacks in 2023. True, Harper is held to higher standard. The question is why? <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Listen to article \u2022\u00a00:00 min Questions we should be asking but aren\u2019t \u2026 Do the Phillies need to make a<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":31267,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_animmysite_disable_animation":false,"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.inquirer.com\/resizer\/v2\/QIJ2KXSRAFCMVP3WTYL46RR7UY.jpg?auth=f6398b8da3d1178da386956eef010bcbcc3c44e9388cec34173ddf0cda812db3&width=760&height=507&smart=true","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[213],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-31266","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-trending-sports-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31266","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31266"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31266\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/31267"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31266"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31266"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31266"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}