Three hours before the Phillies played the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday night, Trea Turner fielded some ground balls at shortstop.
The balls were hit right at him, so Turner, who has been on the injured list since May 4 with a hamstring injury, didn’t have to move much.
It was another step in Turner’s progression. Phillies manager Rob Thomson said Turner has been “jogging lightly” but offered no timetable on when Turner would be cleared to run the bases, let alone head to the minor leagues for a rehab assignment, let alone return.
Thomson also didn’t seem overly concerned, despite Turner hitting .343 in the 33 games he played in.
That’s because the player replacing Turner has kept the Phillies’ juggernaut going without the $300 million shortstop.
It’s rather remarkable considering that Edmundo Sosa was forever known as a good fielder and a light hitter. But there was nothing light about Sosa’s massive home run in the second inning of the Phillies’ 4-2 win over the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday night.
The two-run shot traveled 439 feet with an exit velocity of 110 mph. It landed well over the center-field fence and onto Ashburn Alley, no doubt scrambling some fans in line for cheesesteaks.
Sosa was the first Phillies player to hit a ball onto Ashburn Alley since Darick Hall did it on July 22, 2022.
EdMOON SHOT#RingTheBell pic.twitter.com/Oer7jqDzbT
— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) May 31, 2024
Was hit the farthest ball Sosa ever hit?
“I think so,” Sosa said in Spanish with an interpreter translating. “I don’t know how far it went, but that ball definitely went a little far.”
Phillies starting pitcher Aaron Nola admitted that he wasn’t watching Sosa’s at-bat, when his blast gave Nola a 3-0 lead that was seemingly never in jeopardy.
“I heard it,” Nola said. “It sounded really good. That guy is raking right now. It’s fun to watch. I love watching Sosa out there. He plays with a lot of passion and a lot of energy.”
Consider that Sosa has started 21 games, all at shortstop, since Turner’s injury. He is hitting .313 with 3 homers, 13 RBIs, 4 doubles and 4 triples. Before the home run, Sosa had an OPS of .983 while replacing Turner. It’s over 1.000 now.
Sosa’s fWAR (Fangraph’s calculation of wins above a replacement player) since May 4 is 1.4, the best in the National League over that span, just ahead of teammate Bryce Harper and Dodgers’ slugger Shohei Otani, who were both at 1.2.
Harper and Ohtani have contracts that total just over $1 billion. Sosa is getting paid $1.7 million this season.
More importantly, Sosa has enabled the Phillies to keep rolling without Turner. They’re 14-7 in the games Sosa has started for him. They’re 40-18 overall, the first MLB team to 40 wins. They’re the third fastest to 40 wins in team history, behind only the 1976 and 1993 teams, who got there in 57 games.
Sosa’s offense is only part of what he means to the Phillies. That has been the case ever since the Phillies traded for him at the deadline in July of 2022.
It was hardly considered a big move at the time. Sosa was a career backup in St. Louis, and his role would stay that way with the Phillies. And really, Sosa will go back to that role when Turner returns.
So forget about the notion of Turner moving to the outfield, or some other wacky idea. Sure, Sosa also backs up third baseman Alec Bohm and second baseman Bryson Stott. But they are everyday players, too.
So there won’t be a plethora of opportunities for Sosa once Turner gets back. Thomson said he will have to figure all of that out eventually.
“It’s a good problem to have,” he said. “He’s a really good player … He comes to play every day. He brings energy every day, whether he’s playing or not playing. We see the type of player he is now that he’s getting a chance to play, get consistent at-bats.
“Hopefully, he keeps it going because I really like the kid.”
But Sosa’s hitting has afforded the Phillies another luxury: They don’t have to rush Turner back.
When Turner first got hurt, he estimated he would be out for about six weeks, which would mean a return sometime in late June. The fact that he hasn’t started running yet could mean it might be longer. After all, Turner will also need a rehab assignment to the minor leagues before he can return.
That’s not to say the Phillies are going to delay Turner’s return. Rather, it means that Turner can return when he’s fully healthy.
Sosa is making that possible.
“It feels good,” Sosa said. “I think that I’m living the dream right now. I’m having a lot of fun on the field. I’m just trying to go out and do things right.”
Bryson Stott gets defensive pic.twitter.com/2De5ELUIom
— MLB (@MLB) June 1, 2024
Finally, Sosa was asked a question about his defense, something he has always been known for. Stott, at second base, made three nice plays − chasing down a foul popup, leaping to snare a line drive, and then diving to his left for a grounder before getting up and throwing to first.
Sosa, meanwhile, was steady at shortstop, like he has been all along. Sosa has not committed an error in those 21 games without Turner.
For this, Sosa credited the pitching staff. Nola gave up two solo homers and three hits overall in 6 1/3 innings. The bullpen pitched 2 2/3 hitless innings.
“They make hitters hit a lot of grounders to me, and I can make cool plays behind me,” Sosa said. “We have a rotation that takes pride in making the games quick. They go after hitters. They do a great job of attacking the hitters. I gotta remain focused and active during the game because of that.”
No wonder why Sosa is “living the dream.”
