It was for the two standing ovations. It wasn’t in the tribute video. It was a completely separate scene at a completely unremarkable moment, one that didn’t seem to matter.
But Justin Turner was as important as any Dodger in the past decade, and what happened late Monday afternoon at Dodger Stadium is why.
Before the official celebration of Turner’s first game here in his nine-year tenure came to a shocking end, Turner threw a party of his own.
Wearing his Seattle Mariners cap backwards and his red beard flowing, Turner walked among hundreds of fans gathered in a cordoned-off area behind home plate.
There, in the scorching heat, he spent nearly 30 minutes signing autographs and posing for photos with seemingly everyone.
He hugged. He smiled. He charmed. This was him. This is what the Dodgers have been missing. This is what they need to get back.
“The fans here live and breathe and cry and sweat Dodger blue,” Turner said before the Dodgers’ 3-0 win over his last team. “I think Tommy [Lasorda] It’s best said, Dodger Blue runs through the veins of every fan in town. I can’t thank them enough for the support they’ve given me…they’ll always have a special place in my heart.”
That place became clear on Monday when Turner came to town with his Mariners and was honored as a returning hero, two seasons after leaving here for the Boston Red Sox, six months after signing with the Toronto Blue Jays and later being traded to Seattle.
Yes, he’s been a bit tossed around. Sure, he’s 39 and in the final innings of his career. For former Dodger homecomings, this wasn’t the triumphant march of Corey Seager or Cody Bellinger.
But the love he felt during the ovations and hugs from his teammates who welcomed him to home plate before the game screamed what the statistics could not express.
JT is a Dodger. JT will always be a Dodger.
“I wish he was a Dodger forever,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “That’s just not how sports work. But to me, he’s always a Dodger.”
You hear that, Dodgers? Make it real. Bring Justin Turner home for good.
It appears he wants to play another season, so they should sign him this winter and make sure the season is played as a Dodger, as a backup infielder and as an experienced presence in the locker room.
He signs a one-year contract, ends his career here and then remains here in a kind of leadership role.
He could be an assistant general manager, helping to identify and acquire the kind of hard-working players who are like him. He could be a special advisor, getting the best out of overachievers like himself.
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Or – and this seems too perfect – he could join the coaching staff as the Dodgers’ future manager, someone who would be a strong representative for the organization if Roberts ever leaves.
Roberts himself gave Turner a vote of confidence, saying, “He’s probably the smartest player I’ve ever had. He understands all facets of the game, on the field, off the field. His responsibility as a professional athlete.”
Turner appears ready to come back. The Dodgers just have to ask.
“I’m from Southern California, I think it’s a great place to be,” Turner said. “It’s a great place to play. If that opportunity came up, I would really, really consider it.”
He belongs here. He fits here. He was the most popular Dodger during the 2020 championship run, spending his time connecting with fans in a way no other player could match.
With his unkempt red locks, cap on backwards and shirt untucked, he looked like the kind of Dodgers the diehards recognized in themselves.
Not interested in appearance, only in winning, full of as much talkativeness as gratitude.
He came from here. He lives here. He gets it. He is eternally grateful for it.
“It was one of the best things that ever happened in my career, getting the opportunity to put on this uniform that so many great players have worn over the years and to be on teams that have done historic things,” he said. “It was really something I was so honored to be a part of.”
He was brought here by Ned Colletti for the 2014 season as a castoff from the New York Mets. He was supposed to make the team on a non-guaranteed contract during his first spring training here. He never stopped appreciating the distance and depth of his journey.
Not only did he lead the Dodgers to the World Series with a walk-off home run against the Chicago Cubs in the 2017 National League Championship Series, but he did so on the 29th anniversary of Kirk Gibson’s World Series home run.
Not only did he save the pennant in 2020, but he did so with a diving tag in the Game 7 victory of the NLCS over the Atlanta Braves.
In 86 postseason games, he hit 13 home runs with 42 RBIs and an .830 OPS. He was not only clutch on the field, but also in the locker room, where he and Adrián González are credited with paving the way for new manager Dave Roberts’ credibility. The dynasty would never have happened without not only Justin Turner’s bat, but his voice.
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“Justin and Adrián González were two of my biggest allies, advocates, for a first-time manager,” Roberts said. “To help me convince the players and gain confidence. For that, I will always be grateful to those two guys in particular.”
Off the field, his foundation performed giant miracles while he orchestrated small miracles, one of which occurred when the Dodgers honored a veteran at every home game. As the veterans left the field, Turner would stand at the corner of the dugout waiting to hand over an autographed baseball.
In his final official appearance as a Dodger, in the fall of 2022, Turner won the prestigious Roberto Clemente Award for community service. He wanted to be here forever, and it really seemed like that would happen.
But when the Dodgers declined his $16 million option after that season, it led to a disagreement over his value, prompting him to sign with the Red Sox. The Dodgers offered him a one-year, $10 million contract; he ultimately signed a two-year, $21.7 million contract with Boston.
Turner was openly irritated, telling then-Times reporter Jorge Castillo that “I never imagined wearing a different uniform. … I made it clear what I wanted. So I don’t know what happened, but it happened.”
What happened was that the Dodgers bet Turner money on JD Martinez, and it turned out to be a lucky decision as he hit 33 home runs with 103 RBIs.
It’s hard to argue with Turner that he wants more money. It’s also hard to argue with the Dodgers that they want a younger bat with more pop.
On Monday, Turner seemed to finally have come to terms with the farewell and was eager to write a new chapter.
“What happened, happened,” he said. “I think it’s pretty well documented how I felt at the time. But nothing has changed. I’m still super grateful for the nine years I spent here.”
It was a night that felt like an ending. For Justin Turner and the city that loves him, we hope it’s just a beginning.
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This story originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times.
