Inside The Phillies

Phillies Fans Welcome Back Trea Turner In Emotional Moment

Philadelphia Phillies fans were overjoyed to get Trea Turner back from the injured list.

Tyler Maher

Jun 17, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Trea Turner (7) throws to first base.
Jun 17, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Trea Turner (7) throws to first base. / Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports
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After a tough road trip for the Philadelphia Phillies where they went 2-4 against the Boston Red Sox and Baltimore Orioles last week, they got a much-needed boost on Monday.

Prior to Monday's game against the San Diego Padres, the Phillies announced that they were activating star shortstop Trea Turner from the 10-day IL and optioning outfielder Johan Rojas to Triple-A.

It was the first game in over a month for Turner, who hadn't played since May 3 due to a left hamstring strain. He'd been crushing the ball before going down, slashing .343/.392/.460 with 47 hits, 27 runs, 10 stolen bases and 1.6 WAR in 33 games.

Philadelphia did just fine without him, going 25-13 in his absence compared to 22-11 before he got hurt. Still, Phillies fans were excited to see the former batting champ back in the lineup on Monday.

Batting second behind Kyle Schwarber, Turner received a heartwarming welcome when he came up to the plate against Randy Vasquez in the bottom of the first after Schwarber walked. The 43,134 on hand at Citizens Bank Park gave him a 21-second standing ovation, reminiscent of the one he received right before breaking out of his brutal slump last August.

The ovation seemed to rattle Vasquez, who stepped off before even throwing a pitch to Turner. Some of the fans made signs to welcome back the two-time All-Star.

While Turner popped out to second in his first at-bat, it didn't take long for him to pick up where he left off. He finished the game 2-for-5 with a run, raising his average to .345 and helping Philadelphia roll to a 9-2 win, staying eight games ahead of the Atlanta Braves in the NL East.

With Turner setting the table for Bryce Harper and Alec Bohm, the Phillies' lineup just got a lot more potent.

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Tyler Maher
TYLER MAHER

Tyler is a writer for Sports Illustrated's Inside the Phillies. He grew up in Massachusetts and is a huge Boston sports fan, especially the Red Sox. He went to Tufts University and played club baseball for the Jumbos. Since graduating, he has worked for MLB.com, The Game Day, FanDuel and Forbes. When he's not writing about baseball, he enjoys running, traveling, and playing fetch with his golden retriever.

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