Free agency
Dombrowski and Fuld made one of the offseason’s big splashes when they went all in on free agent shortstop Trea Turner. He cost about $300 million through 2033, and to justify that he’ll have to step it up a bit.
Through half a season, Turner is batting .249 with eight homers and a weak .688 OPS, numbers that put him in the lower half of major league shortstops. His WAA is a barely positive +0.1.
The better news has been brought by pitcher Taijuan Walker, signed after a 2022 season spent with the Mets. In Philadelphia, Walker is 9-3 across 17 starts with a 3.93 ERA. That amounts to a +1.1 WAA, second-best on the Phillies staff and third-best on the team.
Craig Kimbrel, signed in January as the team’s closer, has racked up 12 saves on a 3.82 ERA in 35 appearances. He has added another +0.4 WAA to the total.
The news isn’t all good. Dombrowski and Fuld took a chance on veteran utility player Josh Harrison, and they’re finding out why everybody else has given up on Harrison. He’s hitting .225 with two homers in 96 plate appearances. That’s a -0.8 WAA.