Shortstop Trea Turner, who hasn’t seen the field since September 7th, is making his return in the final game of the MLB season according to manager Rob Thomson.

We may have already seen this coming. Thomson was fairly encouraged with what he saw out of Turner in the past week. It was reported that he was running the bases, and started taking batting practice with the team.

Turner, who leads the National League in batting average, suffered a right hamstring strain earlier this month, and there were fears that he may miss at least the start of the postseason.

Luckily for the Phils, Turner will be able to get in a few innings of work to get himself fresh and  in shape for the postseason run.

It hasn’t seemed like Philadelphia lost a beat with Turner gone though. From the time the former batting champion went down, the Phillies won six consecutive games and have gone 12-6 in his absence – including officially clinching the NL East.

Turner has been one of baseball’s most elite players, holding a career .297 batting average over the course of 11 years in the league. And for the Phillies to get reinforcements to an already loaded roster, it pays massive dividends for a team looking for their first World Series win since 2008.

While he was gone, both Bryson Stott and Edmundo Sosa stepped in relief. 

We already know what Stott brings to the table, but Sosa had performed admirably within this time. He recorded hits in five games in seven starts, including a game where he crushed three home runs against the Marlins. 

Even though Philadelphia still looked like a perennial contender in his absence, Turner’s presence unlocks a whole new dimension for the Phillies postseason run.

Philly already has the NL leader in home runs in Kyle Schwarber, as well as former MVP Bryce Harper, who has a hit in six out of his previous eight games.

Outside of missing star pitcher Zack Wheeler, it brings the Phillies at near full strength, making them amongst the most dangerous teams in the National League.

Philadelphia finishes its season today against the Minnesota Twins at 3:05 p.m. ET.