Diamondbacks right-hander Taijuan Walker has changed agencies and is now a client of Excel Sports Management, Robert Murray of FanRag reports (on Twitter).
Still just 25, Walker debuted in the majors in 2011 as a highly touted prospect with the Mariners, who used a first-round pick on him the previous year. Walker didn’t quite live up to expectations during his time in Seattle, which dealt him to Arizona a year ago in a blockbuster that also featured Jean Segura, Mitch Haniger and Ketel Marte.
In his first season in Arizona, Walker rode a highly effective fastball to a 3.49 ERA over 157 1/3 innings, thereby aiding in the playoff-bound Diamondbacks’ unexpected resurgence. Walker also notched 8.35 K/9 against 3.49 BB/9 and recorded a 48.9 percent groundball rate, which helped him tamp down home runs. After giving up homers on 17.6 percent of fly balls in his Seattle swan song, he cut the number to a much more palatable 11.3 in 2017.
Walker’s output last season was worth $20MM, according to FanGraphs, making his $2.25MM salary a serious bargain. MLBTR’s Matt Swartz projects Walker to earn more than double last year’s amount ($5MM) in 2018, his second of four potential arbitration-eligible seasons.
His old agency was Reynolds Sports Management.
Thank you. Once again… they don’t post the former agency UNLESS it was the Boras Corporation.
I honestly don’t know if they deliberately leave it out unless it’s Boras. Just the one time I noticed they didn’t leave it out Boras WAS the former agent. They might as well just start including it every time someone changes agents because I know they know it and I WILL keep posting it in the comments when they leave it out.
They deliberately don’t post who the former agent was because doing so can have implications for their business moving forward. If they posted that it was boras before it was most likely not meant to be included or a well enough known player that we’d all know it was boras anyway.
It makes the previous agents look terrible,
What if they stopped saying Boras as the only agent whose identity is disclosed, whenever he’s the previous agent being replaced?
Would you guys still be as mad ?
I think it’s just transparency. If an agency is dependent on one client staying with their firm or stifling the announcement of that player leaving, they probably won’t be in business long. They just need to post who the former agency was, as well as the new agency.
TIM DIERKES… make this happen!
Claiming it makes the former agency look “terrible” is a joke. You are just saying who it was. Not why he left. Players change agents all the times for various reasons so dont give me this crap that MLBTR is doing some honorable thing. They are not
Oh my God you think MLBTR has some implications on a sports agency going forward if they mention a player left for another agent?? Hahahaha what a joke.
Sure dude huge implications. I mean those bug time players look to MLBTR to vet who they shod choose to represent them.
Give me a break!
You’d think a player would do a little more research on an agent than MLBTR.
“I honestly don’t know if they deliberately leave it out unless it’s Boras.”
Earlier tonight Kyle Downing posted a piece which named the outgoing agent while this bit by Connor Byrne omits that info.
Consider the possibility that there is no “they” who decided on a site-wide policy. Each writer writes his own stuff and decides for himself what to include. You are assuming that there is a MLBTR policy wrt naming the outgoing agent. Kinda doubt that is the case.
Agree that the name of the ex-agent is as relevant as the name of the new agent. Believe I said so months ago when the issue first (?) arose with you and xabial. But the omission of the former agent in this piece is almost certainly a personal choice (or even neglect) by its author, not a site policy to screw Scott Boras.
“Believe I said so months ago when the issue first (?) arose with you and xabial”
Yup. It was in “J.D. Martinez hires Scott Boras” article.
mlbtraderumors.com/2017/11/j-d-martinez-hires-scot…
Walker debut in 2013, not 2011, I remember his first start against Houston.
*debuted
Yeah, I thought the same thing. If the math was applied, he’d have been 17-18 years old in his debut.
He, also, changed REALTORS®. His former agent was Russell Shaw.
Terrible reporting. Half a story as usual. MLBTR has no problem mentioning former agency if Scott Boras is fired.
You’re right, show how much of an outrage this whole experience has been for you by boycotting the website and not logging in for a while. They’d never see it coming.
Conor Bryne this is just lazy reporting
Lol, Connor follows the rules, just like everybody else.
Was it lazy reporting when Steve didn’t include who JD replaced when he hired Boras? Or Kyle in that other article, today?
It’s obvious to me this is (currently) mlbtr policy, no need to call out Connor on it, when all his articles, including his big news articles, not just minuscule writeups on agency chances, are anything but “lazy”
Unlike most people, I actually note the author of every piece, and Connor’s work is exceptional, and anything but “lazy”
If you’ve got beef, take it with the site admin, not the writer, who probably would happily disclose this easy to find info “previous agents” than have these attacks on his character “lazy”
Well he was wrong about Walker’s debut, and according to what he wrote he is saying Walker made his debut at age 19. It seems lazy to me, how hard is it to proofread?
minor semantics.. man. Especially when they’re correct most of the time.
We all make mistakes. Connor’s written some great articles, and I’m not knocking him because he wrote “2011” instead of “2013”
He never mentioned the age. He just wrote down the year, and you’re supposed to do the math. It’s a very minor error, that doesn’t warrant being called “lazy” in my book, for him, or any other writer here — especially when they have a history of great articles. Actually, Connor’s articles are some of my favorites.
That’s my point, it’s not a horrible mistake, the story isn’t invalid because of it, it’s just a minor error because of laziness in my opinion.
I don’t know if it validates calling someone “laziness” in my opinion.
MLBTR is my #1 site for all things baseball. This is accomplished through the sheer hard work, and continued efforts of their excellent writers Jeff, Steve, Connor, Jason, Kyle, on Tim Dierkes website.
(Thank you for keeping it consistently this quality, Tim)
Every now and then, there might be a typo. We aren’t perfect, and these typos aren’t common, or even significant typos (if I might add)
Because of the scarcity of these mistakes (and if there are ever are, they are usually very, very, very minor) and if you point out any mistake you find to them, the writer usually courteously, thanks you) This typo isn’t enough for me to call Connor “lazy”. on this article because of Connor, and all other writers’ (had they made this same mistake) history of writing excellent pieces, that are high and above the rest when it comes to MLB Coverage. (In my opinion)
I think lazy is too harsh of a word for this type of mistake, that very rarely comes once in a blue moon.
I appreciate Connor (or anyone else here) to not call them lazy for any small stupid typo, I may find, not just because it almost never happens, or because it’s free, or the minor aspect of the error, but because of everything they’ve provided for us throughout the years.
Thanks, guys!
The typos occur a lot more than you think.
It does. And the grammar can sometimes be painful, too. All they need to do is hire an editor/fact checker and they’ll be good to go.
Another example this morning in the Preller story. Stated Wil Myers is 28, but he’s actually 26. If a site wants to be taken seriously, you need to edit.
It’s just a mistake! We all make them. Well, except for all these so-called perfect people on here who have NEVER made a mistake in their whole perfect little keyboard warrior lives. Must be nice
living in that nice and warm
and cozy and comfy perfect basement world !
That’s why there’s this thing called ‘editors.’ They correct mistakes. Too bad your mom couldn’t correct you.
I’m shaking mad myself, just truly outraged. Why don’t we show MLBTR how much this whole ordeal has meant to us by logging off our accounts and not visiting the site any longer. You go first and I’ll be shortly behind, after recovering from this unforgivable incident.
Hey Conor. Walker was formerly represented by Reynolds Sports Management. I guess you could not find that information. Shame on you for pretending to be a newsman
A return to Seattle for Skywalker is in the mix. Makes sense.
Agents supply info for these posts. You can’t burn bridges in journalism. Publishing the previous agent is seen as ungentlemanly. Baseball is a small universe.
Get a grip men. Who cares who the former agency was. And who cares if they make a mistake. The give us good baseball information and great chats 3 days a week.!!! If you don’t like it stop coming to the site!
The people complaining clearly care.
“Who cares who the former agency was?”
EVERYONE!
False, I do not care. Therefore, everyone does not care.
False! Not EVERYONE!
Everyone except cubsbearsbulls2018, brucewayne and his alter ego cubsfan2489. Happy?
Alter ego? I don’t know who cubsfan2489 is, I’m just speaking for myself. Thank you.
I said cubsfan2489 is brucewayne’s alter ego. Not yours.
Ah, gotcha. Sorry for the misunderstanding.
Oh ok Jim we will all stop coming to the site then since you say so.
And if we all stop coming Jim there will not be a site so stick it where the sun don’t shine