Michael A. Taylor

AL Central Notes: Guardians, Taylor, Jenkins

By Mark Polishuk | March 1, 2025 at 3:35pm CDT

The Guardians’ estimated $100.4MM payroll is lower than the $104.2MM they spent in 2024, as per RosterResource’s calculations, and Cleveland also moved a lot of long-term money off the books by trading Andres Gimenez and Myles Straw to the Blue Jays in separate deals. Despite what might seemingly be a bit of extra money available for the Guards to spend before Opening Day, Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer thinks the team won’t dip into free agency for any late additions, and is more likely to re-invest those savings towards possible extensions for current players on the roster.

Early-career extensions have long been a key plank of Cleveland’s team-building strategy, dating back to John Hart’s tenure as general manager in the 1990’s. On the current team, Jose Ramirez, Emmanuel Clase, and Trevor Stephan are all playing on multi-year extensions, and there are plenty of interesting talents the Guardians might look to lock up for the future. Steven Kwan is in his first of three years of arbitration eligibility, and Tanner Bibee stands out as the top extension candidate among the Guards’ long list of pre-arb players. It takes two to tango, of course, so there would have to be an equal desire on the part of any interested players in working out an extension that is acceptable to both sides.

White Sox Sign Michael A. Taylor

By Darragh McDonald | February 12, 2025 at 1:35pm CDT

February 12: The Sox officially announced their signing of Taylor today. Right-hander Jesse Scholtens was transferred to the 60-day injured list in a corresponding move. He underwent Tommy John surgery in March of last year. Based on this transfer, it seems the Sox aren’t expecting him back in the first two months of the season.

February 11: The White Sox and outfielder Michael A. Taylor are in agreement on a deal, reports Robert Murray of FanSided. The ALIGND Sports Agency client gets a $1.95MM guarantee on a one-year deal with performance bonuses, per Mark Feinsand of MLB.com. The Sox have a full 40-man roster and will need to open a spot.

Taylor, 34 in March, has long been one of the best defensive center fielders in the game. From 2015 to 2024, he has 78 Defensive Runs Saved in center. That tally puts him third in the majors for that stretch, though the two guys ahead of him are now retired: Kevin Kiermaier and Lorenzo Cain. His 62 Outs Above Average at the position put him sixth in the league.

Offensively, he’s been more mercurial. He strikes out a lot and doesn’t take many walks. He does have enough pop in his bat to occasionally overcome those deficiencies somewhat, with four seasons of double-digit homer tallies, though he also remains vulnerable to deep troughs in his production.

The last two seasons highlight the up-and-down nature of his work at the plate. With the Twins in 2023, he struck out 33.5% of the time and only walked at a 6.7% clip but did park the ball over the fence 21 times. That led to a .220/.278/.442 batting line and 95 wRC+. That means he was still 5% below league average on the whole, but thanks to his defense and 13 stolen bases, FanGraphs considered him to be worth two wins above replacement.

He signed a one-year, $4MM deal with the Pirates in 2024 and things went downhill. His strikeout and walk rates held fairly steady at 35% and 7.7% respectively, but he hit only five home runs and produced a dismal line of .193/.253/.290.

After last year’s historically poor season, the White Sox have been giving deals to various veteran players to pad out their inexperienced roster. That includes adding Mike Tauchman and Austin Slater to an outfield that already included Luis Robert Jr. and Andrew Benintendi. Elsewhere on the roster, they’ve signed Josh Rojas, Martin Perez and Bryse Wilson.

Going into the season, Robert will be the everyday center fielder, at least until a trade comes together. He had an excellent season in 2023 but scuffled through an injury-marred 2024. All reporting from this winter has indicated the Sox have set a high price on Robert. As opposed to selling low, they would rather let him prove his health and effectiveness in the early parts of 2025 before hopefully striking a deal at the right time.

They would also surely love to flip Benintendi and the three years left on his deal, though he’s coming off two rough seasons. He did have a strong second half in 2024, so perhaps there’s some hope of him getting back on track. Like Robert, the club should run him out there for regular playing time in the hopes that he plays well and builds some trade value.

Tauchman and Slater could perhaps form a platoon in another corner. Slater hits right-handed and has been better against lefties in his career. Tauchman has fairly neutral splits but does hit left-handed.

Taylor seems likely to be on the bench in a fourth outfielder role, though he does give the club a bit of insurance in the event Robert gets bitten by the injury bug again. Or if some club meets their lofty asking price and gets a trade over the line. Until that happens, he can serve as a defensive replacement or pinch runner from time to time. The club could also put Robert in the designated hitter slot from time to time as a way of easing his workload, putting Taylor in center.

Oscar Colás and Dominic Fletcher are also on the roster but they have options and could be in Triple-A until they either earn their way into bigger roles or injuries opening up opportunities. Players like Corey Julks and Zach DeLoach have been bumped off the roster this winter but are still around in non-roster roles.

Pirates Release Rowdy Tellez, Michael A. Taylor

By Darragh McDonald | September 25, 2024 at 6:44pm CDT

September 25: Pittsburgh released Taylor and Tellez, according to the MLB.com transaction log. That’s a formality with both players headed to free agency at season’s end regardless.

September 24: The Pirates announced that they have designated first baseman Rowdy Tellez and outfielder Michael A. Taylor for assignment. Those two active roster spots will go to infielder Liover Peguero and outfielder Joshua Palacios, who have both been recalled from Triple-A Indianapoli. Noah Hiles of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported about Tellez on X shortly before the official announcement. The club’s 40-man roster count drops to 38.

Both Tellez and Taylor were signed to modest one-year deals in the winter as the Bucs tried to supplement their roster. Tellez got a $3.2MM guarantee while Taylor got $4MM. Unfortunately, neither signing worked out well for the Bucs, as both players have struggled this year. With just a handful of games left in the season and the club well out of contention, the Pirates have bumped them off and will presumably give more playing time to younger guys who could perhaps factor into next year’s club.

Tellez, 29, was non-tendered by the Brewers after a poor 2023 season. He hit 13 home runs and slashed .215/.291/.376 for a 78 wRC+. But since he had hit 35 home runs in 2022 with a .219/.306/.461 line and 110 wRC+, it wasn’t totally crazy for the Bucs to expect a bounceback.

In the end, Tellez had an up-and-down season in 2024 that reflected his inconsistent results in prior years. His Pittsburgh tenure started terribly, as he hit .177/.239/.223 through the end of May. He then got scorching hot for three months, hitting .310/.346/.533 from June to August. But he’s gone cold again lately with a .116/.255/.209 performance in September.

Put together, Tellez has a .243/.299/.392 line and 89 wRC+ on the year. He isn’t considered a strong defender and isn’t a burner on the basepaths, so he doesn’t really offer much value if he’s not producing with the bat. Both FanGraphs and Baseball Reference consider him to have been below replacement level this year. The Bucs will likely spread the first base playing time around to a few different guys for their remaining games but the position should be a target area for them to upgrade this winter.

It’s also possible there’s a financial motivation for moving on from Tellez. Per Ethan Hullihen on X, Tellez would have unlocked a $200K bonus by getting to 425 plate appearances and is currently at 421.

Taylor has always been an excellent defender in center field but with inconsistent offensive results. Last year was perhaps his best showing at the plate, as he hit 21 homers for the Twins, but he still struck out 33.5% of the time. His offense cratered this year, as he struck out 35% of the time and slashed .193/.253/.290 for a wRC+ of 50. Among players with at least 300 plate appearances this year, only Brandon Drury and Eddie Rosario have a lower wRC+ mark. Oneil Cruz, who struggled defensively at shortstop, has been moved to center field lately.

The Bucs will put both players on waivers in the coming days but they are sure to go unclaimed. They won’t be postseason eligible with any claiming team and their recent performance won’t give them any appeal for the remaining games of the regular season. Each player has enough service time to reject an outright assignment and elect free agency, so they will likely be going into offseason mode a few days ahead of schedule.

Pirates Place Michael A. Taylor On Outright Waivers

By Leo Morgenstern | August 25, 2024 at 11:59pm CDT

The Pirates have placed Michael A. Taylor on outright waivers, according to Robert Murray of FanSided. It is important to note that Taylor was not designated for assignment, which means he is still on the team’s 26 and 40-man rosters, so he is eligible to play for the Pirates unless he is claimed by another club.

Taylor, 33, remains an excellent defender and a valuable baserunner in his 11th big league season. Unfortunately, he is putting up career-worst numbers at the plate. Considering he already had a career .683 OPS and 82 wRC+ entering the year, a career-worst performance means the righty batter has been all but an automatic out. He is slashing .196/.257/.284 with four home runs and 20 RBI in 1oo games.

With that in mind, it’s not hard to see why the Pirates might be looking for another team to take Taylor’s salary off their hands. The veteran signed a one-year, $4MM contract with Pittsburgh in the offseason, and he is still owed approximately $790,000 for the remainder of the season. However, if Taylor goes unclaimed over the next 48 hours, he will have the right to reject an outright assignment to the minor leagues without forfeiting any salary. Thus, it wouldn’t be surprising if the Pirates decide to retain him on the active roster. He still offers value as a veteran fourth outfielder and quality defensive replacement, even if he isn’t the everyday player the Pirates hoped he would be. On the other hand, the team might prefer to eat his remaining salary and give his roster spot to a more promising young player. Trade deadline acquisitions Nick Yorke and Billy Cook have both been hitting well at Triple-A lately; surely the Pirates will want to see what both of them can do at the big league level sooner rather than later.

Pirates Announce Several Roster Moves

By Darragh McDonald and Steve Adams | June 4, 2024 at 1:48pm CDT

The Pirates announced a series of roster moves today. They recalled catcher Henry Davis, outfielder Jack Suwinski and infielder Liover Peguero from Triple-A Indianapolis. They also selected the contract of right-handed reliever Ben Heller from Indy. In one corresponding move, they placed infielder/outfielder Ji Hwan Bae on the 10-day injured list with a right wrist sprain, retroactive to June 3. Outfielder Michael A. Taylor went on the paternity list, opening another roster spot, while left-hander Jose Hernandez was optioned to Triple-A and catcher Grant Koch was designated for assignment.

Additionally, the club reinstated catcher Jason Delay from the 60-day IL and optioned him to Triple-A. To open a 40-man spot for him, left-hander Marco Gonzales was transferred to the 60-day IL.

The news on Davis was reported on the weekend. Manager Derek Shelton was on 93.7 The Fan earlier today, as relayed by Noah Hiles of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, and revealed the news about Suwinski, Peguero, Bae and Taylor.

Davis, the No. 1 overall pick from the 2021 draft, returns to the majors after spending a bit more than a month in Triple-A. He’d gotten out to not only a rough start in 2024 (.162/.280/.206 in 83 plate appearances) but to his overall big league career. The former Louisville star also struggled through 255 plate appearances last season in his debut campaign and carries a disappointing .201/.297/.319 slash to this point in the majors.

Of course, that’s a small sample of just 338 plate appearances — far too limited a data set to make any broad-reaching conclusions about Davis’ long-term outlook. He looked reinvigorated during his short time in Indianapolis, utterly laying waste to International League pitching. In 101 turns at the dish, Davis recorded an outrageous .296/.436/.642 batting line with seven home runs and seven doubles.

Davis has long been viewed as a bat-first catching prospect, which admittedly makes his early struggles at the plate concerning but also creates some optimism that he’ll eventually turn a corner in the batter’s box. The Pirates’ hope is that this brief Indy reset will be a catalyst for just such a turnaround. And with Joey Bart now joining fellow catcher Endy Rodriguez on the injured list, Davis should have a clear opportunity to prove he can carry some of those gains over to the MLB level.

Suwinski will return after just a week in the minors. He was optioned last week after struggling to a brutal .174/.268/.297 slash to begin what he hoped would be a strong follow-up to last year’s 26-homer breakout. His rate stats were better in Indianapolis, as he hit .250/.276/.429 with a homer and a triple in his seven-game sample, but Suwinski also fanned in 13 of his 29 plate appearances (44.8%). That’s not the type of progress for which he and the team were hoping, but Bae’s injury created an outfield need and forced the team’s hand.

Heller, 32, has pitched in parts of five major league seasons and has a 3.06 ERA in 50 big league innings, albeit with a below-average 20.9% strikeout rate and a hefty 11.8% walk rate. Metrics like FIP and SIERA both peg him north of 5.00. He’s benefited from some decent fortune on balls in play (.261 BABIP) and a sky-high 89% strand rate that’s about 17 percentage points higher than average.

That said, Heller has also posted genuinely intriguing numbers in Indianapolis this year — none more so than his enormous 43% strikeout rate. Through 18 1/3 frames, he’s yielded a 4.91 ERA, but most of the damage against him came in one stretch of four straight appearances in which he allowed runs. He’s since rattled off 5 2/3 shutout frames, fanning 10 opponents along the way against four walks. Command is still an issue for Heller, but his 10.1% walk rate in Triple-A is a bit better than his big league standards.

Koch was only just called to the majors for his big league debut when Bart landed on the injured list. The 27-year-old former fifth-rounder appeared in three games but did not collect a hit in eight trips to the plate. He’s a .236/.295/.362 hitter in parts of two Triple-A seasons. The Pirates will have a week to trade Koch, attempt to pass him through outright waivers, or release him.

Delay played a prominent role with the Pirates over the past couple seasons and hit .251/.319/.347 in 187 plate appearances last year. That’s respectable production for a backup catcher, but Delay is generally considered just that — a backup option behind the dish — whereas Davis is the potential future if not at catcher then perhaps at first base or in right field. The Pirates understandably want to give Davis as many opportunities as possible, and he’ll now slide back into the primary catcher role with veteran Yasmani Grandal backing him up.

As for Gonzales, his move to the 60-day IL was largely procedural. The team needed a 40-man spot to reinstate Delay, and Gonzales has been on the 15-day IL since April 14. He’ll be eligible to return later this month, but he’s yet to begin throwing. He’s out with a strained left forearm muscle and may not be back until the season’s second half at this rate.

Pirates Sign Michael A. Taylor

By Darragh McDonald | March 16, 2024 at 3:19pm CDT

March 16: The Pirates officially announced Taylor’s signing today, and placed Moreta on the 60-day IL to create room for the outfielder on the 40-man roster. Moreta’s move to the IL is hardly a surprise after a ligament injury his elbow sidelined him for the foreseeable future earlier this month.

March 15: The Pirates are making a late addition to their outfield. Pittsburgh is reportedly in agreement with center fielder Michael A. Taylor on a one-year, $4MM contract. The outfielder is a client of the ALIGND Sports Agency. Pittsburgh has not yet announced the move and will need to open a spot on their 40-man roster once the deal is finalized. They may be able to do so by moving Dauri Moreta to the 60-day injured list.

Taylor, 33 later this month, has long been a defensive standout in the big leagues. He debuted back in 2014, giving him a decade of experience to this point. In that time, he has racked up 72 Defensive Runs Saved, 55 Outs Above Average and a grade of 41.1 from Ultimate Zone Rating. Each of those numbers place him in the top 11 among outfielders in that span.

Though he’s now into his 30s, he has continued to put up positive numbers in those categories, with 5 DRS, 8 OAA and 2.8 UZR last year with the Twins. He’s played all three outfield positions but the vast majority of that playing time has come in center: 6,428 innings up the middle compared to 373 1/3 in left and 162 2/3 in right.

His hitting has been less straightforward, as he has generally provided a bit of home run power but with limited on-base ability and some concerning strikeout levels. He’s coming off a year in which he hit 21 homers, a personal best, but his 6.7% walk rate was subpar. His 33.5% strikeout rate was much higher than league average and a personal high, outside of his cup-of-coffee debut in 2014 and an injury-marred 2019.

That led to a lopsided batting line of .220/.278/.442, which translates to a wRC+ of 96. Though that indicates he was 4% below league average at the plate, he also stole 13 bases and provided the aforementioned quality defense. FanGraphs considered him to be worth 1.7 wins above replacement while Baseball Reference had him at 1.9.

It was reported earlier this month that Taylor was viewing himself as comparable to players like Kevin Kiermaier and Harrison Bader. That’s a fairly reasonable comp since those guys are also defensive stalwarts in center field with average-ish offense.

Unfortunately, this offseason has been harsh to the players left standing at this late stage of the offseason. Various clubs have spent to their preferred comfort levels, with many pointing to significant competitive balance tax bills or uncertainty around their TV revenues. As such, various players have recently settled for modest deals that were undoubtedly below their expectations coming into the winter.

Since the start of February, position players like Adam Duvall, Enrique Hernández, Gio Urshela, Tim Anderson, Amed Rosario, Randal Grichuk, Joey Gallo and others have signed for guarantees of $5MM or less. Kiermaier and Bader each got $10.5MM around the New Year but Taylor lingered on the open market and will have to settle for a deal well below that.

Taylor drew fairly widespread interest this winter, with clubs like the Blue Jays, Red Sox, Reds, Dodgers, Angels, Padres and Twins connected to him at various points throughout the offseason. But many of those clubs went in different directions as time went on. The Jays brought back Kiermaier, the Red Sox traded for Tyler O’Neill, the Dodgers got both Enrique and Teoscar Hernández, the Angels added Aaron Hicks and the Twins grabbed Manuel Margot from the Dodgers.

In the end, it will be the Pirates who will be the beneficiary of Taylor staying on the market for so long. Last year, the Bucs moved Jack Suwinski from being primarily a corner outfield guy to center field. The results were mixed, as he was graded as being 10 runs below average by DRS but three above by OAA, while he got a mark of -1.7 from UZR.

That move pushed Bryan Reynolds into left field but now perhaps Taylor’s signing will push Suwinski over to right field. Coming into today, the Bucs had a muddled mix of options for right field, including Connor Joe, Edward Olivares and Joshua Palacios. Joe can play a bit of first base and may platoon with Rowdy Tellez there, while Olivares and Palacios each have options and could either be on the big league bench or in the minors. The Pirates were connected to Tommy Pham earlier today but that is presumably off the table now with Taylor in the fold.

It’s also possible to envision some platoon possibilities in the outfield, with Taylor hitting from the right side. Taylor has hit .256/.310/.436 against lefties in his career for a wRC+ of 99, but the split was even more drastic last year, as he hit .252/.313/.602 versus southpaws for a wRC+ of 146. Suwinski, a lefty swinger, has a .234/.344/.488 slash in his career against righties but just .164/.263/.300 against righties. Those splits lead to wRC+ numbers of 125 and 57, respectively.

How manager Derek Shelton plays it remains to be seen, but the addition of Taylor at a modest price certainly upgrades the club’s outfield defense. Taylor isn’t an amazing hitter but was great against lefties last year and has real pop in his bat when he makes contact, plus an ability to steal a base here and there.

The move brings the Pirates’ payroll commitments to just over $85MM, per RosterResource. That’s the lowest payroll in the league apart from the actively-moving Athletics, but it’s nonetheless a jump for the Bucs. Per Cot’s Baseball Contracts, they opened last year at $73MM, which was itself a jump from the two years prior.

ESPN’s Jeff Passan first reported the Pirates had reached agreement with Taylor on a one-year, $4MM deal.

Padres Still Showing Interest In Michael A. Taylor, Adam Duvall

By Anthony Franco | March 11, 2024 at 9:47pm CDT

The Padres have left open the possibility of bringing in veteran outfield help well into Spring Training. Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune writes that the Friars are still involved in the respective markets for free agents Michael A. Taylor, Adam Duvall and Tommy Pham, among others. The Athletic’s Dennis Lin has also linked the Padres to Pham on a few occasions in recent weeks.

Taylor is the only viable everyday center fielder still on the open market. He remains one of the sport’s top defensive outfielders as he nears his 33rd birthday. By measure of Defensive Runs Saved and Outs Above Average, Taylor rated anywhere between five to seven runs above par in nearly 1000 innings of center field work for the Twins a year ago. DRS has credited him with 65 runs saved at the outfield’s most important spot over his decade in the major leagues.

That’s sufficient to make Taylor a viable bottom-of-the-lineup regular so long as he’s contributing anything offensively. He did enough at the plate in Minnesota, connecting on a personal-high 21 home runs and stealing 13 bases over 388 plate appearances. Taylor has some power, although it comes with a lot of empty at-bats. He punched out more than a third of the time en route to a .220 average and very poor .278 on-base mark. Taylor has gotten on base less than 30% of the time in three of his last four seasons.

The offensive inconsistency has led teams to shy away from his asking price. The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal wrote last week that Taylor views himself similarly to fellow glove-first center fielders Kevin Kiermaier and Harrison Bader, each of whom signed for one year and $10.5MM earlier this offseason. While he is coming off a superior platform year to Bader and doesn’t have the same injury history as Kiermiaer, it’s hard to envision Taylor finding that kind of salary a few from Opening Day.

That’s particularly true from a San Diego team that has spent much of the offseason cutting payroll. From a roster perspective, though, the Padres might be the most straightforward fit. José Azocar is a .249/.292/.341 hitter in 153 big league contests. He has rated as a quality defender in his own right, but he might have an even lighter bat than Taylor does.

The Padres will probably want to keep Azocar in a fourth outfield capacity. As things stand, that’d likely mean calling upon Jackson Merrill as their starting center fielder. Merrill, 20, hasn’t played above Double-A. Primarily a shortstop prospect, he has worked in the outfield this spring. The lefty-hitting Merrill is one of the sport’s top minor league talents, but relying on him as a starting center fielder would be a gamble even for a San Diego team that is generally aggressive about promoting its prospects.

Merrill has zero minor league innings at the position. That’s on top of his limited experience facing advanced pitching. The former first-round pick has held his own at the plate this spring, hitting .286/.355/.357 in 31 trips to the plate. He’s drawn three walks while striking out twice but only has two extra-base hits (both doubles).

Further complicating matters, the Padres don’t have a clear solution in left field. Even if the Friars feel Merrill is ready to face big league arms, they could play him in left to accommodate a Taylor signing. That’d bump Jurickson Profar to the bench. So too would signing one of Duvall of Pham, both of whom are righty-hitting corner options. They’re similarly valuable players, as MLBTR’s Nick Deeds explored over the weekend. Duvall brings more power to the table, while Pham is more consistent at getting on base.

In any case, the Padres will need to make some kind of outfield transaction in the next few days. Azocar, Profar and Fernando Tatis Jr. are the only outfielders on the 40-man roster. Minor league signees Óscar Mercado, Tyler Wade and Brad Miller remain on the major league side of camp as possible bench additions.

San Diego is faced with those questions sooner than almost anyone else. They begin their regular season with a two-game series against the Dodgers in South Korea on March 20-21. The Padres will fly to Seoul two days from now. Acee notes that if they do sign a veteran outfielder, that player would likely skip the Korea series and remain in minor league camp to build up for the rest of the season.

Latest On Michael A. Taylor

By Anthony Franco | March 5, 2024 at 9:21pm CDT

Teams looking for an everyday center fielder in free agency are down to Michael A. Taylor. The 2021 Gold Glove winner is arguably the best unsigned outfielder overall, making it a surprise that he remains on the market into March.

Clearly, teams have yet to meet the asking price set by Taylor and his camp at ALIGND Sports Agency. While the specific ask isn’t known, Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic reports that Taylor views himself comparatively to fellow glove-first center fielders Kevin Kiermaier and Harrison Bader. Those players signed one-year pacts for $10.5MM with the Blue Jays and Mets, respectively, earlier in the offseason.

It’s not an unreasonable comparison. Taylor is coming off a better offensive season than Bader had in 2023. He only hit .220 with a .278 on-base percentage, but he slugged a personal-high 21 home runs over 388 plate appearances for the Twins. Bader had a similarly paltry on-base mark but managed just seven homers in 344 trips to the plate between the Yankees and Reds.

Kiermaier’s offensive profile is built far more around contact skills than Taylor’s is. His .265/.322/.419 showing was slightly superior to Taylor’s batting line. By measure of wRC+, Kiermaier was four percentage points better than a league average hitter a season ago. Taylor was four points below par. While that’s not a huge gap, Kiermaier has a multi-year track record of roughly average offensive results. Taylor’s 2023 hitting production was his best in six years.

All three players are easy plus defenders in center field. Kiermaier is among the best defenders of his generation. Statcast graded him 12 runs above average in a little less than 1000 innings last season. Bader rated as +8 runs in just over 750 frames, while Taylor checked in seven runs above par in nearly 1000 innings. All three players have battled injuries and spent at least a minimal amount of time on the IL a year ago. The 29-year-old Bader has a clear age advantage over Kiermaier and Taylor, both of whom are approaching their mid-30s, although that’s not as big a factor on a one-year contract.

It’s easy to see why Taylor would put himself in the same conversation as those other players. That said, it’s difficult to imagine him landing a comparable contract at this point of the offseason. The market generally isn’t kind to middle-tier free agents who remain unsigned into Spring Training. A number of teams have indicated they’re up against the player payroll they’re prepared to carry into the upcoming season.

At points this offseason, Taylor has drawn reported interest from the Red Sox, Dodgers, Padres, Angels, Pirates, Reds, Blue Jays and the incumbent Twins. A handful of those teams instead addressed the outfield in other ways. The Dodgers brought back Enrique Hernández. That signing was in conjunction with a trade shipping Manuel Margot to Minnesota, essentially ending the chance of Taylor returning to the Twin Cities. Toronto retained Kiermaier to play center field.

The Red Sox, Reds, Pirates and Angels could still benefit from a right-handed complement to their projected starting outfield. They’d probably all view Taylor as more of a fourth outfielder than an everyday center fielder, however. San Diego stands as the cleanest fit to offer him regular run in center field. Yet given their organizational payroll constraints, it’s unlikely they’re willing to offer a salary in line with the Kiermaier and Bader deals.

Twins Still Interested In Michael A. Taylor

By Steve Adams | February 16, 2024 at 9:30am CDT

The Twins are known to be looking for rotation depth and a right-handed-hitting outfielder even as spring training gets underway, and Bobby Nightengale of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune writes that Minnesota hasn’t ruled out a reunion with Michael A. Taylor. The veteran Taylor was seeking a two-year deal earlier in the offseason, per the report, though it’s not clear whether that ask remains in place.

Taylor, 33 next month, played his typical brand of plus defense in 2023 with the Twins. He logged 960 innings in center field and wound up being credited with five Defensive Runs Saved and eight Outs Above Average. He went 13-for-14 in stolen base attempts, adding to his track record as a contributor on the basepaths. His season at the plate was a bit more unusual, at least by his standards.

Though he’s not typically known for his power, Taylor belted a career-high 21 homers in just 388 trips to the plate. His .223 isolated power mark (slugging percentage minus batting average) was 83 points higher than the .140 career mark he carried into the season. That surge came at a cost, however. Taylor appeared to perhaps be selling out for power, as his 33.5% strikeout rate was easily a career-high mark over a full season — and nearly 10 percentage points higher than the 23.9% mark he’d turned in with the Royals just one year prior. Taylor finished out the season batting just .220 with a paltry .274 on-base percentage but a heartier .442 slugging percentage.

By all accounts, Taylor enjoyed his time in Minnesota. He said back in October that he hoped to return for the 2024 season. However, he’s not likely to have the same role waiting for him if he opts to return. Byron Buxton didn’t play a single game in center field last season as he battled lingering effects from offseason knee surgery. Buxton is slated to return to center field work this season, which would leave less playing time available for Taylor at Target Field. Of course, Buxton’s injury history is among the lengthiest in baseball, so there’d likely be some stretches where Taylor is pressed into regular duty in center — but it nonetheless seems unlikely he’d approach 1000 innings in the outfield in 2024, as he did last year.

That said, even in the unlikely event that Buxton were healthy enough to play nearly everyday in center, there’d still be ways to get Taylor into the lineup. He tattooed left-handed pitching in ’23, hitting .252/.313/.602 with nine homers in only 112 plate appearances. The Twins will have lefty-swinging bats in both the outfield corners — Matt Wallner, Max Kepler — and could use Taylor to spell either player against southpaw opponents. Kepler is a premium defender himself, making him unlikely to be lifted for a late-game defensive replacement. Wallner, on the other hand, is more of a bat-first left fielder and could be swapped out in such situations. A defensive outfield with Taylor in left, Buxton in center and Kepler in right would be among the best in the game.

Taylor has drawn interest from a wide range of teams this offseason. Each of the Pirates, Angels, Padres, Blue Jays, Reds, Dodgers and Red Sox have been linked to him at various points throughout free agency. Some of those clubs (e.g. Dodgers, Jays) have since gone in other directions in their outfield search, but Taylor is still stands as a fit with many of them.

Minnesota’s front office is likely working with a somewhat limited budget. The Twins stated early in the offseason that they planned to reduce payroll due to uncertainty regarding their television broadcast situation, with Dan Hayes of The Athletic reporting a $125-140MM range as the target at the time. They’re currently projected at about $123.5MM, per Roster Resource, so there’s certainly room to add Taylor back into the fold. Adding Taylor and another arm could prove more difficult within those budgetary constraints, barring some type of late trade to free up a bit more payroll space (e.g. Kyle Farmer). The Twins have also reportedly shown interest in righty-hitting outfielder Adam Duvall. Other options on the market include Randal Grichuk, Enrique Hernandez, Tommy Pham and perhaps Whit Merrifield, who’s expecting to decide on his next team within the next couple days.

Angels, Padres, Pirates Interested In Michael A. Taylor

By Anthony Franco | January 5, 2024 at 10:40am CDT

Free agent center fielder Michael A. Taylor is drawing interest from the Angels, Padres and Pirates, reports Robert Murray of FanSided. Murray adds that the Halos are also considering Adam Duvall as a free agent outfield target.

Taylor should have the broader market of the two veterans. His ability to play an excellent center field makes him a strong fit on a number of teams. He could operate as a glove-first regular for clubs without a strong in-house option in center or serve as a high-end fourth outfield target for others. The Dodgers, Reds, Blue Jays, Red Sox and Mets have also been linked to Taylor earlier in the offseason. Toronto and New York subsequently signed Kevin Kiermaier and Harrison Bader, respectively, likely taking them out of the mix.

Boston acquired Tyler O’Neill as a right-handed hitter with the ability to play anywhere in the outfield. That could reduce their urgency on Taylor, but Murray suggests they’re still involved. He adds that a return to the Twins, with whom Taylor spent the 2023 campaign, also remains a possibility.

For teams that aren’t going to entertain a run at Cody Bellinger, Taylor is the top center fielder on the open market. He remains a high-end defender even as he enters his age-33 season. Taylor has been a below-average hitter for the bulk of his career, but he’s coming off one of his better offensive showings. He popped a career-best 21 home runs in just 388 plate appearances. Taylor still struck out in more than a third of his plate appearances and hit .220 with a meager .278 on-base percentage. Yet the defense and the ability to run into 15-20 homers while hitting in the bottom third of a lineup makes him a serviceable regular.

The Angels have a projected outfield of Taylor Ward, Mike Trout and Mickey Moniak. Ward missed the final couple months of last year after sustaining facial fractures on a frightening hit-by-pitch. Trout hasn’t reached 120 games or 500 plate appearances in a season since 2019 because of various injuries. Moniak posted solid bottom line results last year, hitting .280/.307/.495 through 323 plate appearances. However, that came with a 35% strikeout rate and a 2% walk percentage that are even worse than Taylor’s career baselines.

Moniak is a clear regression candidate who is better suited in a fourth outfield capacity. Even if the Halos are optimistic about his ability to produce against right-handed pitching, the former #1 overall pick has a .172/.200/.230 slash in 91 career plate appearances versus lefties. The righty-hitting Taylor has been better against southpaws than against right-handed pitching, as one would expect. Since the start of 2020, he’s a .257/.317/.455 hitter with the platoon advantage.

Duvall also hits from the right side. While he has had reverse platoon splits in recent years, he’s a better overall offensive player than either Moniak or Taylor — albeit with a similar low-OBP, power profile. He hit 21 homers in 353 plate appearances for the Red Sox last season, running a .247/.303/.531 slash. Duvall can play some center field but is better suited for a corner spot entering his age-35 season.

As for the other clubs recently linked to Taylor, each of Pittsburgh, San Diego and Minnesota are viable fits. The Padres need to bring in multiple outfielders after trading Juan Soto and Trent Grisham. They’d seemingly prefer to keep Fernando Tatis Jr. in right field rather than moving him up the middle. José Azocar (a career .249/.292/.341 hitter) and prospect Jakob Marsee are the top internal options in a center field position that requires an outside pickup.

Minnesota leaned heavily on Taylor last year as knee injuries kept Byron Buxton to designated hitter. While the Twins have expressed hope that Buxton could handle outfield work again in 2024, they can’t count on him to make 120+ starts at the position.

The Pirates could turn center field back to Jack Suwinski, although public metrics were mixed on his defensive performance. Bryan Reynolds can handle center on occasions but fits best in left. Right field is a question mark, with trade pickup Edward Olivares likely battling Joshua Palacios for work. Andrew McCutchen will see the majority of his time at designated hitter while rotating through the corners. Signing Taylor could allow the Bucs to kick Suwinski to right field and boast a strong defensive outfield.

Kiermaier and Bader each signed one-year pacts worth $10.5MM. Taylor could be in line for something similar, although it wouldn’t be a surprise if he landed a two-year deal at a lower annual value but a slightly better overall guarantee.

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