Cubs Reportedly Inking Justin Turner to 1-Year, $6M Deal
As first reported by Patrick Mooney of The Athletic, the Cubs and Justin Turner are finalizing a one-year deal for $6 million. The 40-year-old has been on the radar for a while and makes a lot of sense as a grizzled veteran who can back up at least first base with the potential to play the hot corner in an emergency. Turner did his best work as the Dodgers’ third baseman several years ago, but hasn’t really played the position as age forced him into a first base/DH role.
The bat still plays, though, and Turner just finished up a season in which he slashed .259/.354/.383 with 11 homers and a 117 wRC+ over 539 plate appearances. That should be enough to dispel any comparisons to Trey Mancini, who, despite being nearly a decade younger at the time he joined the Cubs, had only once posted a wRC+ above 116 in a full season. This deal is shorter and cheaper, plus the Cubs are not counting on the aged infielder on as anything other than a bench bat.
Turner saw appeal in spending what could be his final MLB season getting to play at Wrigley Field, plus his wife is a Chesterton, IN native. If he’s able to put up anything close to what he has over the last two years, this should work out really well.
We’ll know more once the Cubs make the move official, but this deal could spell the end of an era for either Vidal Bruján or Gage Workman. It’s also possible the Cubs could clear space by adding someone to the 60-day IL.
Ed. note: There’s a persistent misunderstanding out there that the Cubs hadn’t already provided an insurance policy for Matt Shaw at third base and that Turner could serve in that role. Jon Berti is a much more capable defender at the hot corner and currently stands as the de facto second-string third baseman. Turner has played a grand total of 90 innings at third in the last two years and has played the position somewhat poorly since 2018.
However, he’s been fine at first base and is a great option as short-side platoon help for Michael Busch. Turner has very neutral splits for his career and slashed .252/.355/.403 with a 119 wRC+ in 141 plate appearances against southpaws last season; the lefty-batting Busch went .258/.330/.382 with a 103 wRC+ in just 100 PAs against lefties. It’s a marginal disparity that could shrink in the future, but this is a case of trying to leverage even the smallest advantages.
In addition to what he does when he’s in the game, Turner can impart the wisdom of two decades in professional baseball to the Cubs’ younger hitters.