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Washington Nationals: Trea Turner’s Move to Center Field

By Ryan Schultz

Mar 23, 2016; Melbourne, FL, USA; Washington Nationals shortstop Trea Turner (7) hits the ball in the sixth inning against the New York Yankees at Space Coast Stadium. The Washington Nationals won 13-0. Mandatory Credit: Logan Bowles-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 23, 2016; Melbourne, FL, USA; Washington Nationals shortstop Trea Turner (7) hits the ball in the sixth inning against the New York Yankees at Space Coast Stadium. The Washington Nationals won 13-0. Mandatory Credit: Logan Bowles-USA TODAY Sports /
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Speedy Washington Nationals infielder Trea Turner has almost no experience in center field, but Dusty Baker is throwing him out there anyway.

Washington Nationals manager Dusty Baker is known for making moves that appear questionable to those outside of the team. His most recent experiment involves putting the speedy Trea Turner in center field, despite him having next to no experience in the outfield. Baker’s hand was forced to make this move when first baseman Ryan Zimmerman returned from the disabled list, moving Anthony Rendon back to third base, and sending Daniel Murphy back to second base.

While Zimmerman was out due to injury, Turner came up and made his presence known at the top of the lineup. Last week alone he hit a triple and stole home, showing the value his speed provides the team. Because Baker wants Turner in the lineup daily, he had to find a place for him to play defensively.

The young player spent a majority of his time in the minor leagues playing in the middle infield. During only six games this season, all with the Nationals’ AAA team, has Turner played in the outfield. The team says that he got a crash course lesson while in AAA from the outfield coordinator, but he is still incredibly lacking in experience.

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Although Turner lacks experience in the outfield, his natural athleticism and speed should help him adjust pretty quickly. It may not be the most ideal situation for the Nationals defensively, but with Ben Revere and Bryce Harper on the corners it shouldn’t hurt them too much. In fact, the Nationals are making a very smart move for Turner’s future by giving him both some defensive flexibility along with providing him the major league at bats he needs.

Too often teams get caught in the middle with their prospects, wanting them on the major league team but not providing them enough at bats. The Nationals are not making that mistake with Turner; they understand how valuable it is for Turner to see as many major league pitches as he can as he continues to develop.

The only question remaining is whether it is worth it for the Nationals to try so hard to make room for a player like Turner. Trea Turner has shown that his speed is of great value to the team, but will he be able to hit at the same pace over a larger amount of time? So far in his 55 plate appearances, Turner has hit well posting a .333/.382/.510 slash line with a 138 wRC+ and 0.7 fWAR in a short amount of time. If Turner continues to hit like he has, the Nationals must absolutely keep him in the lineup every day.

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While moving Turner to center field looks like a mistake from the outside looking in, the move actually has a lot of merit. The Nationals have faith in their speedy young player, and they want to see him play every day and get better each day. If he can be successful in center field, he will be another name among the many young players with impressive defensive flexibility.

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