SAN DIEGO — Four years ago, John Middleton gassed up his private jet — the white Bombardier Challenger with a Phillies “P” on the tail — and flew to Las Vegas twice to meet with Bryce Harper and help close the largest deal in franchise history.
He wasn’t quite as hands-on when it came to the Phillies’ latest free-agent pursuit.
But as the talks got more serious with Trea Turner — the Phillies’ No. 1 choice over Carlos Correa, according to a source, in a shortstop market that also included Xander Bogaerts and Dansby Swanson — Middleton offered another reminder of why Jimmy Rollins once compared him to George Steinbrenner.
In a lunchtime (in Philadelphia) call Monday with team executives at the winter meetings at San Diego’s Manchester Grand Hyatt, the billionaire owner urged president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski to be “reasonably, responsibly aggressive” in boosting an offer to Turner, especially because the Phillies were fairly certain that the Padres had made a better offer.
“We were at a number, they were at a bigger number, obviously, and I just finally said, ‘Look, Dave, do you believe this guy is a difference maker?’” Middleton said by phone Monday night. “He said, ‘John, he’s one of the 10 best players in baseball.’ And I said, ‘Well, what are we screwing around with this for?’”
The voice on the other end was undeniably Middleton’s. But the words? They were straight out of a Larry David impersonation.
Middleton has never minded the Steinbrenner comparison. The late Yankees owner was notorious for stopping at nothing to bring championships to the Bronx. And in the last five offseasons, with Middleton holding the checkbook, the Phillies have targeted and signed at least one marquee free agent to a nine-figure contract.
— Harper in 2018-19: $330 million
— Zack Wheeler in 2019-20: $118 million
— J.T. Realmuto in 2020-21: $115.5 million
— Nick Castellanos in 2021-22: $100 million — after signing Kyle Schwarber for $79 million
— Turner: $300 million
“There is a no-nonsense approach. These are the guys we want, so go get them,” Middleton said. “If we go after somebody, we’re serious.”
For months, the Phillies anticipated they would be shopping for a shortstop in the offseason. They weren’t planning to pick up Jean Segura’s option and had the flexibility to move Bryson Stott from shortstop to second base.
They liked Correa, a two-time All-Star and World Series champion in 2017 who had the added appeal of being the youngest (28) of the free-agent shortstops and the only one not tethered to draft-pick compensation. Dombrowski is fond of Bogaerts from their shared time with the Boston Red Sox.
But Turner, 29, has a combination of speed and power that is nearly unrivaled in the sport. As one rival executive described it Monday, Turner doesn’t run the bases so much as he glides across them. After visiting Turner at his home in Florida, Dombrowski, general manager Sam Fuld, and manager Rob Thomson were even more convinced that he’d be the right fit.
“Everyone has different philosophies, but I really believe that you win with star players,” said Dombrowski, who wouldn’t discuss Turner specifically because the deal is pending a physical. “Now, you can’t win with star players alone, but you can build around star players.”
Dombrowski has always been drawn to stars, but especially in Detroit and Boston, where ownership provided a budget that allowed him to expand his collection. It’s possible, though, that he has never worked for an owner who is more obsessed with winning than Middleton.
“The baseball decisions are truly Dave’s, and then Dave gives me guidance on what he thinks a player is worth and what the range is,” Middleton said. “When it gets to the point of these types of [nine-figure] numbers, it really is an owner’s decision. There’s enormous financial consequences. I think if you ask Dave, he’d tell you that I’m generally the one who’s pushing him on salary more than he’s pushing me.”
And once Dombrowski told Middleton that Turner could help make the difference between falling two wins short of winning the World Series and actually winning one, Middleton was all in.
Phillies officials didn’t believe they needed to top the Padres’ offer, according to sources. Turner is good friends with Harper, thrived during his years of working with hitting coach Kevin Long in Washington, and is believed to prefer playing on the East Coast to be closer to his and his wife’s families in West Palm Beach, Fla., and Flemington, N.J., respectively.
But they did need to close the gap.
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“I said, ‘Do you want to save 5 million bucks or 10 million bucks to get him for $290 million and risk losing him? Let’s not lose this guy, if he’s that good, over this kind of money,’” Middleton said. “I said, ‘I’m supporting you. If your baseball judgment is this guy is a significant difference-maker, just get him.’”
Once the Turner contract is finalized, the Phillies’ payroll will be $21 million shy of the $233 million luxury-tax threshold. But they have at least $31 million before they reach their total from this year. Middleton authorized Dombrowski to push the payroll into tax territory this year for the first time in franchise history. It’s likely he will do so again in 2023.
Like any nine-figure contract, Turner’s deal comes with risks. The Phillies pushed for a longer term, as they did with Harper’s 13-year pact, in order to lower the average annual value and increase their flexibility to add payroll. They will pay Turner less per year ($27.27 million) than the combined 2022 salaries for Segura and shortstop Didi Gregorius.
But the short-term benefit will almost certainly cause a long-term headache. How many more years will Turner be able to play shortstop? Certainly not 11. He will be 41 when the contract expires. Eventually, he will have to change positions.
If Turner helps deliver him a World Series or two, Middleton won’t mind having those conversations.
“We’ve been able to create a great environment for players to want to come play here,” Middleton said. “I’m proud of the culture that we’ve developed. I’m proud that Trea Turner took less money to play for us.
“Ask Bryce what I was telling him in February of 2019 about putting together a team that can compete for a World Series and whether I lived up to my word. I think he’d say absolutely ... and maybe beyond.”
