The Los Angeles Dodgers struck gold when they signed Justin Turner in February 2014 to a Minor League contract with an invitation to Spring Training. Turner played his way onto the Opening Day roster, and has been a mainstay ever since, with his role expanding each season.
After serving as a utility man in 2014 and backup third baseman last season, this year marked Turner’s first as the everyday third baseman. His continued emergence in 2015 led to Los Angeles trading Juan Uribe.
Now Turner is among the Dodgers notable free agents. He’s also someone the club has identified as a priority this season. Another, Rich Hill, was re-signed to a three-year contract on Monday.
While there’s a general consensus Turner will also return with the Dodgers, they’re mindful of laying the foundation to shift in another direction if he’s lost to free agency, per ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick:
The Dodgers are “aggressively” checking out alternatives at third base in case free agent Justin Turner goes elsewhere, an MLB source said. Turner is still the team’s No. 1 option, but the Dodgers are being careful to protect themselves in case things fail to work out.
This offseason the Dodgers have been linked to the likes of Todd Frazier, Logan Forsythe and Evan Longoria. Frazier and Longoria are established third basemen, while Forsythe is primarily a second baseman who has experience in a utility role.
More recently, the Dodgers and San Diego Padres reportedly were discussing a potential trade for Yangervis Solarte. There isn’t much to speak of on the open market beyond Turner.
Luis Valbuena, a 31-year-old who hit .260/.357/.459 with 26 doubles, 15 home runs, 71 RBI and a 116 OPS+ over 109 games, is conceivably the next-best free-agent third baseman.
Turner batted .296/.364/.492 with 81 doubles, 50 home runs, 193 RBI and a 136 OPS+ in 386 games over the past three seasons with the Dodgers.
General manager Farhan Zaidi said last month the team would likely look internally or to trades in the event Turner is not re-signed, given the lack of free agents at the position.
