MLB Rumors: Trea Turner may become available in trade talks due to contract issues

Washington Nationals star infielder Trea Turner may end up surprisingly hitting the trade market ahead of Saturday. 

As the MLB trade deadline approaches, fans around the league are wondering whether or not Cy Young-winning ace Max Scherzer will be wearing a new uniform when the dust settles.

But it could end up that another Nationals star is playing the rest of this season with someone else.

Trea Turner, in the final year of his contract with the Nationals, is apparently a surprise name to keep an eye on.

According to MLB insider Peter Gammons, the Nationals and Turner remain far apart in contract talks which could force him into the trade market ahead of the deadline. As Gammons puts it, the Nats are unwilling to give Turner a long-term deal which openly suggests a deal could be made ahead of Saturday’s deadline.

Turner is fourth-year arbitration-eligible after the season, so Washington could bring him back for one more season, but he will become an unrestricted free agent in 2023.

MLB Rumors: Will Nationals trade Trea Turner?

The lack of willingness for the Nationals to offer Turner something long-term is another surprising piece of this weird puzzle. It could be that Washington is offering deferred money, which is very much their jam when negotiating with its players, and this will ultimately be resolved with a deal being struck to keep Turner with the Nationals.

But it’s also the Nationals modus operandi to be unwilling to spend money on its homegrown talent. Since 2018, Washington allowed Bryce Harper and Anthony Rendon both to sign elsewhere rather than bring them back as part of their core.

While seemingly unfathomable that Turner would be shoved out of the room by his own team, the bar was set when the idea of paying Harper superstar dollars was balked at.

A trade might not come together before Saturday, but the drama in Washington with Trea Turner is certainly worth keeping an eye on moving forward.