Justin Turner Abides, Keeping Young Cubs Away from Gutters

Justin Turner went into Tuesday’s game against the Marlins slashing .169/.291/.185 with a 48 wRC+ over 79 plate appearances. Going 3-for-5 with a double inflated those numbers in a big way, but they’re still well below average, and his -0.2 fWAR says a replacement-level player would be better. Except that a replacement player couldn’t possibly have the same impact as a 40-year-old with the wealth of experience Turner has accumulated over the last two-plus decades.

A 2004 College World Series champion with Cal State Fullerton, Turner was drafted by the Reds in 2006 and was traded to the Orioles two years later. He was designated for assignment in May of 2010 after just 17 uneventful games for Baltimore, then was claimed by the Mets and had three-plus seasons as a decent backup. That wasn’t enough to keep him from being non-tendered, which may have been the best thing ever to happen to him.

Turner signed a minor league deal with the Dodgers in 2014  after then-bench coach Tim Wallach saw him hitting at a Cal State Fullerton alumni game, and he went on to bat .340 with seven homers over 322 plate appearances. That started a run of nearly a decade as one of the best hitters on some outstanding Dodgers teams, after which Turner contributed to the Red Sox, Blue Jays, and Mariners.

So while his offensive production remains more than a fair bit shy of good, having someone who has seen and done just about everything the game has to offer is more valuable than his box scores. Turner has experienced the height of success and the depth of failure, he’s played for great teams and terrible ones, has been overlooked and perhaps even overhyped. Sometimes, there’s a man, well, he’s the man for his time and place. He fits right in there. And that’s Turner, in Chicago.

That’s why he’s not being DFA’d despite his struggles at the plate. Though there’s no way to quantify it, I’d wager his positive impact on this Cubs team far exceeds that negative WAR total he’s put up individually. He’s still smiling and energetic, serving as the kind of elder statesman everyone on the team gravitates to as a leader and de facto coach. Such a presence can’t be understated when you have a team filled with young players who are still trying to figure things out.

“Just trying to not impose too much on them,” Turner explained of his role as a sage in the clubhouse. “But be there if there’s questions, and help with guidance, and share experiences…

“Just like bumpers in a bowling lane. Keep them going down the lane, and don’t let anyone get in the gutter.”

That’s particularly true for Tucker’s relationship with Pete Crow-Armstrong, who grew up in the LA area watching the elder statesman as a standout for the Dodgers. The two have developed a strong bond as mentor-mentee or even big and little brothers, with Crow-Armstrong teasing Tucker while also hanging on his every word when it comes to being a competitor.

“It’s real easy to give at-bats away in this game, especially when the game’s out of hand,” Turner said of his advice to PCA before a big at-bat against the White Sox. “His goal this year is to try to take a quality at-bat every single time. Regardless of the results, take a quality at-bat. It was just reminding him: ‘Hey, make sure you take a good one here. Don’t give it away.’”

Turner is like that weed you go to pull out, only to realize its root structure runs so deep that it lives on because you were only able to pluck the exposed portion. Or maybe he’s a spider that gives you an extreme case of the oogies while keeping eliminating flies and other pests from in and around your home. I like that one a little better because of the unseen positive qualities.

As long as the everyday players continue to perform as expected, or a little bit better as Jed Hoyer said some will need to, Turner need only be counted on for his leadership. And hey, maybe he can still provide a big hit in a pinch now and then. He may never get back to the point where he’s the one bowling strikes, but serving as the bumpers for guys like PCA, Matt Shaw, and others makes him The Dude just the same.

You know, that or, uh, His Dudeness, or uh, Duder, or El Duderino if you’re not into the whole brevity thing.