Trea Turner received a standing ovation from Phillies fans at Citizens Bank Park before his first at-bat on Friday night.
With the Phillies leading 2-0 and Brandon Marsh on second base, Turner unfortunately lined out to first base.
Turner was coming off a brutal series in Miami where he went 1-16 with four strikeouts in four games vs. the Marlins. He also botched a ball at shortstop in extra innings on Wednesday, costing the Phillies a victory, where he took full responsibility for the loss.
94WIP's Jack Fritz got the ball rolling on giving Turner a standing ovation with this tweet.
James Seltzer and Joe Giglio agreed with Fritz.
"I get it and I am frustrated with Trea Turner and I said bench him, I am there," Seltzer said on Friday's 94WIP Morning Show. "But he's coming home tonight, he's our guy, he's here for the next decade-plus. I think it's the right move. If he continues to struggle it won't last..I think they're going to give him a standing O when he comes to bat."
"I'm on board with this. I think it's a good thing," Giglio said on Friday's 94WIP Midday Show. "If I was going to the game tonight I would stand up, I would clap, I would cheer for Trea Turner. He's obviously in a bad place...I think the standing O for Trea Turner is the right thing to do. Look, let's be real, this is probably going to be a long marriage...The best thing to do is try to help him make the most of it. Does it change anything? I don't know, probably not...I think this could be an opportunity for the city to show him, 'Hey, we still believe you can be a good player even though you have not been so far.'"
Philadelphia 76ers' Joel Embiid tweeted "LOL" following the ovation, as the reigning NBA MVP has been recently criticized often by fans and media for not getting past the second-round.
Turner is having a miserable 2023 season to start his tenure as a Phillie after signing an 11-year deal worth $300 million this offseason.
The 30-year-old shortstop is now slashing .237/.291/.370, all career lows, with just 10 home runs, 34 RBI, 115 strikeouts, and 13 errors committed in the field.
His Win Probability Added for an Offensive Player (WPA) is now -2.0. His previous career-low for a full season was 0.9.
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