Article: Which MLB Players Best Describe Brice Turang?

[Harold Hutchison]

It seems inevitable – and you will even see it in some breakdowns before the June draft or in various top prospects lists. The prospect in question will be compared to a past player. In one sense, this can be helpful, to give you a sense of what that prospect can do.

Image courtesy of © MARK HOFFMAN/MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL / USA TODAY NETWORK

But let’s also be very honest, since cloning a baseball player is still very well into the realms of science fiction; the single-player comparisons don’t exactly work. Why? Every player is unique, so the direct comparison doesn’t quite work. Christian Yelich wasn’t a pure repeat of past great Brewers corner outfielders like Geoff Jenkins or Ben Oglivie; he also added the ability to steal a bunch of bases and contend for a batting title, as Paul Molitor did at one point.

So, with that in mind, let’s figure out which MLB players, past or present, can describe Brice Turang, who, as of this writing, has excited Brewers fans. There are two who come to mind readily.

Craig Counsell
Turang takes after the current Brewers manager’s playing style in some ways. He has excellent on-base skills and has shown positional versatility across the infield in the minors. Turang has also shown, to date, some very solid defense over the years. Counsell also flashed some speed, swiping as many as 26 bags in a season.

That said, the Counsell/Turang comparison needs to catch up. Turang’s offense has shown signs of being far more dynamic than Counsell’s over his career. There’s also the potential for more power (Counsell’s career high in homers was nine with Arizona in 2005, and Turang looks to crack double digits as an everyday player).

So, if Turang is not a complete clone of Counsell, there must be another player who “fills in the gaps” to describe Turang’s offensive capabilities more completely. It’s a somewhat bigger name.

Jimmy Rollins
When you look at his career from 2001-2005, you can see some other “gaps” in describing Turang’s offensive game. Rollins averaged 37 doubles, ten triples, 12 homers, and 34 steals a season, with an OPS+ of 93. This does seem to match what Turang posted in 2022, where he spent the entire season in AAA.

If Rollins had a weakness compared to Turang, it was in OBP skills. Rollins put up 58 walks for every 662 at-bats per 162 games. Turang drew more than that in each of his full minor-league seasons. Rollins also developed more power than Turang will likely flash in his later career.

Others
Turang’s versatility also includes the ability to play in the outfield, similar to Hernan Perez, who was primarily an infielder for the Brewers from 2015-2019. This could prove helpful to Turang in Milwaukee, as there are some other blue-chip prospects at shortstop, second base, and third base. Orlando Arcia also merits some consideration, given the outstanding glove he flashed from 2016-2021.

Overview
Brice Turang’s ceiling is likely the best of both Counsell and Rollins's 2001-2005 versions. Turang’s defense could easily be contending for Gold Gloves. Still, offensively, he could be a very sneakily potent force between the OBP skills and the chance he could regularly hit double figures in doubles, triples, homers, and steals with regular playing time.

But as a floor, Turang is still likely to be a valuable contributor who could get 60-100 starts a season among multiple positions, where the OBP skills, speed, and pop can still be valuable, a cross between Counsell and Perez. Either way, he may already be making a strong case for a lengthy contract extension.

What do you think, Brewer Fanatics? Should the Brewers lock up Turang in his rookie season?

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[wiguy94]

I think Kolten Wong with better speed is a pretty good comparison. 

[CheezWizHed]

I would hope Orlando Arcia is his absolute floor as a player. Turang should have more of a bat than Orlando.  Hernan Perez is a poor comp... I don't see any similarities there. 

Mark Loretta (someone else brought that up somewhere else) is a pretty close comp, IMO.  Turang has a chance to be slightly better on offense (power) and defense(range/arm), but a decent comp. 

 

[jerichoholicninja]

Hopefully I'm wrong but he feels like Scooter Gennett to me. Plucky, young guy comes up on fire and becomes a fan favorite before crashing down into futility.

[Joseph Zarr]

The guy he has reminded me of for quite awhile is Jim Gantner. I would add, however, Turang is possibly the better athlete and has the potential to tap into a bit more power with his smooth and improving stroke. But, in terms of defensive range and fluidity and flexibility on the diamond it's been Gantner for quite awhile for me. 

[Brewcrew82]

28 minutes ago, jerichoholicninja said:

Hopefully I'm wrong but he feels like Scooter Gennett to me. Plucky, young guy comes up on fire and becomes a fan favorite before crashing down into futility.

Except for the fact that Gennett was bad on defense from the start and strictly limited to 2B...Not even close to Turang's speed and on-base ability, either...

[nate82]

2 hours ago, CheezWizHed said:

Mark Loretta (someone else brought that up somewhere else) is a pretty close comp, IMO.  Turang has a chance to be slightly better on offense (power) and defense(range/arm), but a decent comp. 

That would have been me.  Loretta and Cirillo are two good comps.  Offensively at least they are.  Defensively he is closer to Trea Turner.  

[AKCheesehead]

Jean Segura is one that comes to mind as far as former Brewers comps goes.

[wallus]

Loretta is a poor comparison as he had very limited range and could play every infield position. He was also slow and Turang is fast.

[Thurston Fluff]

He looks a lot like Brian Turang to me.

[CheezWizHed]

4 hours ago, Thurston Fluff said:

He looks a lot like Brian Turang to me.

Terrible comp...

4 hours ago, wallus said:

Loretta is a poor comparison as he had very limited range and could play every infield position. He was also slow and Turang is fast.

I did say Turang had more range.  And I'm pretty sure he could play SS and 3B in addition to the current 2B.  

 

4 hours ago, nate82 said:

That would have been me.  Loretta and Cirillo are two good comps.  Offensively at least they are.  Defensively he is closer to Trea Turner.  

Yeah, I wanted to give credit... just couldn't remember. 😅