White Sox outfielder Michael A. Taylor announced his retirement to members of the media today, ahead of the Sox facing the Nationals in Washington, a place he played for many years. “To be able to play my last games of my career here in this ballpark in front of these fans, it’s just the icing on the cake,” Taylor said, per Andrew Golden of The Washington Post. He is in the lineup for the Sox today, playing center field and batting ninth, in what will be his final game.
Taylor, now 34, was a sixth-round pick of the Nationals back in 2009. He was a shortstop at that time, considered to be raw but in possession of some elite tools. He was moved to the outfield and quickly showed the potential to be a strong defender. He also showed more pop with the bat as he climbed the ladder, hitting 23 homers in the minors in 2014.
Going into 2015, he was considered to be one of the top 100 prospects in the game. Baseball America gave him the #32 spot, MLB Pipeline had him at #42, Baseball Prospectus at #57 and ESPN at #71. FanGraphs was a bit more bearish, putting him at #133 on their top 200 list.
Taylor had already made a brief major league debut in 2014 but got more properly established in 2015. He got into 138 games for the Nats, popping 14 homers and stealing 16 bags, but his overall value was held back by subpar walk and strikeout rates of 6.8% and 30.9%. Over his career, he would have his ups and downs, but his contributions mostly took that shape. He could put the ball over the fence, track it down with his glove and swipe some bags, but the plate discipline was never good.
Despite his flaws, he was a useful player for the Nats during their best stretch in Washington. The club finished above .500 in each season from 2012 to 2019, making the playoffs in five of those eight seasons. Those clubs featured stars like Bryce Harper, Stephen Strasburg, Trea Turner, Juan Soto, Max Scherzer, Anthony Rendon and others, but Taylor often played a solid supporting role.
In 2019, Taylor spent a decent chunk of the year in the minors, only getting into 53 big league games with one home run. But he took on a more prominent role at just the right time. As the Nats made a miracle charge through the postseason, Taylor got into eight of the club’s playoff contests. He clinched Game Five of the NLDS over the Dodgers with a diving catch, as seen in this video from MLB.com. He also slashed .333/.391/.619 in his 23 plate appearances as the Nats eventually went on to win the World Series.
More to come.
Nice little career, congratulations too him.
It was. Got his 10 year retirement package. Lot longer than a lot of ball players.
Once a top prospect. Was an elite fielder who couldn’t hit enough to become a regular. Nonetheless a decent career.
As bad a hitter as he was, he was much better in the postseason.
12 years $27 mill being a plus CF’er and well below average hitter. Not to shabby.
Isn’t that the truth. That’s some serious money. Not too shabby at all.
He probably would’ve had interest in the off-season but good for him if it’s what he wants.
World Series champion Michael A. Taylor
Probably remembered as a Nat first and foremost but best seasons were 2021-2022 in Kansas City as a Royal where he was a borderline great starter with elite defense and average offense.
Seemed like a great teammate, good for him.
12 years….30 mil
He got his 10 years service time earlier this year
Pretty good career, hope he enjoys retirement. He seemed like a pretty cool dude too.