Justin Turner Seems Like an Ideal Fit For Minnesota Twins in Free Agency

As the game of musical chairs at first base continues, veteran Justin Turner and the Minnesota Twins feel like a solid match.

Seattle Mariners first baseman Justin Turner (2) stands in the batters box against the Philadelphia Phillies during the fourth inning at T-Mobile Park in 2024. | Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

This offseason has been extremely active on the first base front, with several players jumping teams via trade or free agency.

Let's recap:

The Minnesota Twins lost Carlos Santana in free agency to the Cleveland Guardians. The Guardians traded first baseman Josh Naylor to the Arizona Diamondbacks.

The Diamondbacks lost Christian Walker in free agency to the Houston Astros. Furthermore, the New York Yankees signed free agent Paul Goldschmidt and the Texas Rangers traded Nathaniel Lowe to the Washington Nationals.

The Rangers acquired slugger Jake Burger in a trade with the Miami Marlins and the Seattle Mariners brought in Donovan Solano, who will apparently make up a platoon with Luke Raley.

As the game of musical chairs shakes out, Pete Alonso (New York Mets) and Justin Turner (Mariners) are the two players without a seat in the game. Alonso could go back to the Mets, but has also been heavily linked to the Blue Jays, leaving Turner as the one name we haven't heard much about this offseason.

That's where we think a marriage between Turner and the Twins could make sense.

The Twins certainly could use Jose Miranda as a platoon partner with Edouard Julien, but Turner could fill that role as well, while also rotating in through the designated hitter spot. He'd provide leadership and a professional at-bat, something the team lost when Santana bolted earlier this offseason.

Furthermore, the Twins are one of the teams operating on a budget this year and Turner shouldn't cost more than $7 million or so.

From a financial, productivity and leadership standpoint, it seems to make sense.

Turner just finished the 16th year of his career with the Baltimore Orioles, New York Mets, Los Angeles Dodgers, Boston Red Sox, Blue Jays and Mariners. He's a .285 lifetime hitter who helped the Dodgers win the World Series in the COVID-shortened 2020 season.

He hit .259 last season with 11 homers, playing for both Toronto and Seattle.

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