Michael A. Taylor

Royals Open To Trade Offers On Michael A. Taylor

By Anthony Franco | December 16, 2022 at 8:17pm CDT

The Royals are open to the possibility of dealing center fielder Michael A. Taylor, reports Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic. They’ve also made corner infielder/outfielder Hunter Dozier available, Rosenthal writes, although Taylor’s the more appealing of that duo.

Taylor, who turns 32 shortly before Opening Day, is coming off one of the better seasons of his career. He hit .254/.313/.357 with nine home runs over 456 plate appearances in 2022. That offensive output is below-average but it was his best work at the plate since his 19-homer showing with the Nationals back in 2017.

The right-handed hitter has a .241/.296/.381 line in a little under 2800 plate appearances over parts of nine seasons. Strikeouts have been a consistent concern for much of that time, as he routinely fanned in over 30% of his trips to the plate during his time in Washington. Taylor has trimmed that swing-and-miss a bit in recent years, though, including a career-low 23.9% strikeout percentage this past season. That’s still a few points higher than average but hardly disastrous, and his .313 on-base percentage was also his best since that 2017 campaign.

Of course, Taylor’s greater appeal lies in his defensive acumen. He’s an excellent center fielder, one who routinely posts elite marks for his glove. Taylor has rated as 60 runs above average in just shy of 5500 career innings in center, by measure of Defensive Runs Saved. Statcast has pegged him at 37 runs above par since the start of the 2016 season. Even as he’s gotten into his 30’s, the former sixth-round pick has shown no signs of tailing off. DRS pegged him as the league’s most valuable defensive center fielder this year, rating him 19 runs above average. Statcast wasn’t quite so bullish, “only” crediting him at +5 runs.

Regardless of the precise value of Taylor’s defense, there’s little question he’s a plus on that side of the ball. He’s also quite affordable, due a modest $4.5MM guarantee in the second season of a two-year contract extension. He’ll hit free agency at the end of next year, but he’d be a fine stopgap and/or a quality fourth outfielder on a contender.

That’s especially true given how shallow the center field market is. Free agency is essentially devoid of regulars at this point, highlighted by players like Jackie Bradley Jr., Rafael Ortega and Bradley Zimmer. There aren’t many obvious trade candidates either. Bryan Reynolds is the most commonly speculated target after his trade request, but the Pirates have maintained an extremely high asking price. That’s also true of the Diamondbacks, who are seeking MLB-ready help in any deal that sees them ship off Daulton Varsho, Alek Thomas or Jake McCarthy. Players like Max Kepler and Ramón Laureano could change uniforms, although they’re each better suited for right field. Cedric Mullins, Trent Grisham and Dylan Carlson all seem longshots, at best, to move.

A number of teams could check in with Kansas City about Taylor, who’d come at a much lower asking price than any of the younger options with extended windows of remaining control. Rosenthal writes the Dodgers are scouring the trade market for center field help, although it’s unclear if they have any interest in Taylor specifically. Other speculative candidates for a center field addition include the Giants, Marlins, Red Sox and Rockies.

While Taylor should generate a few calls, Kansas City figures to have a harder time finding a taker for Dozier. The 31-year-old doesn’t have much defensive value. He’s limited to the corners and has rated very poorly at third base and in the outfield, with first base and designated hitter the better fits. Dozier hasn’t hit at commensurate levels for those positions over the past two seasons, though, carrying a combined .226/.289/.391 line in 1043 plate appearances. FanGraphs and Baseball Reference have each pegged his production below replacement level in both seasons.

The Royals inked Dozier to a contract extension headed into the 2021 season, guaranteeing him $25MM over four years. That’s one the organization likely wishes they could have back, as Dozier has never taken the expected step forward after hitting .279/.348/.522 with 26 homers in 2019. The former eighth overall pick is still due $17.25MM over the next two seasons (including a buyout on a 2025 club option), and the Royals would have to eat the majority of that tab or take back an undesirable deal in return to find a taker.

If Dozier does stick in Kansas City, Rosenthal suggests the Royals would likely move him back to third base. Vinnie Pasquantino has seized either the first base or designated hitter job, while former top prospect Nick Pratto should get another chance at the other spot. MJ Melendez looks like the favorite for left field playing time, while the club has a number of outfielders (Drew Waters, Edward Olivares and Kyle Isbel) who could jockey for reps in right field.

Moving Dozier back to the hot corner would cut into the playing time of both Nate Eaton, who finished the season fairly well as a 25-year-old rookie, and former top prospect Adalberto Mondesi. Mondesi and the Royals agreed to a $3.045MM salary for next year, buying out his final season of arbitration eligibility. He’s coming off another season mostly lost to injury, this time an April ACL tear in his left knee. Rosenthal suggests K.C. could explore trades involving Mondesi as well.

Mondesi, 27, has shown an enviable combination of power potential and athleticism at times. He’s stolen 133 bases and connected on 38 home runs in 358 MLB games, flashing the elite physical tools that made him such a tantalizing young talent. Yet he’s also shown an extremely aggressive offensive approach that has impacted his consistency, and he’s just a .244/.280/.408 career hitter. Mondesi has yet to reach 500 plate appearances in a season, with oblique, hamstring, shoulder, back and groin issues all impacting him even before this year’s ACL injury. He’s a difficult player to rely upon with that kind of track record, but he’s shown flashes of impact talent intermittently as a big leaguer.

Royals Discussing Several Veterans In Trade Talks

By Darragh McDonald | August 2, 2022 at 1:55pm CDT

1:55pm: Starter Brad Keller is also garnering interest, per Feinsand. The 27-year-old righty has a 4.18 ERA on the year, with a tepid 16% strikeout rate but above-average 51.5% ground ball rate. He’s making $4.825MM this year and can be controlled via arbitration for another season.

10:41am: With just under seven hours until the deadline, the Royals could be an important factor. Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports that the markets for outfielder Michael A. Taylor, as well as relievers Josh Staumont and Scott Barlow are “heating up.”

The fact that the Royals are discussing trading away pieces of their major league roster is not surprising, given their place in the standings. They are 41-62 on the year and well out of contention. The question now is how much selling they’re willing to do. They’ve already traded Andrew Benintendi to the Yankees, though he was a pure rental, heading into free agency at the end of the year. The three players mentioned by Feinsand all come with extra control and don’t strictly need to be traded, though there would be reasons to consider offers on all three.

In the case of Taylor, he was headed into free agency this time last year but signed a two-year extensions to stay in KC. That means the Royals could keep him around for the 2023 campaign, but he’s having the best season of his career at the plate. His .280/.352/.395 slash line amounts to a 114 wRC+, or 14% above league average. In each of the previous four seasons, he was between 71 and 77 in that department. He’s also dropped his strikeout rate and increased his walk rate relative to previous seasons, suggesting that his better production is a result of an improved approach at the plate as opposed to mere luck.

He’s also making a modest $4.5MM salary this year, though with some incentives that could increase that number. Still, with only about one third of the season remaining, any acquiring team would be adding less than $2MM to their ledger. That’s a small price to pay for a guy hitting at an above-average level. Of course, Taylor’s primary calling card is his defense and the center field market has been notoriously thin. Teams have been trying to acquire guys like Bryan Reynolds, Cedric Mullins and Ramon Laureano for quite some time, without success so far. Perhaps that will allow the Royals to get an offer good enough that they take and allow Kyle Isbel to take over in center field.

As for Barlow and Staumont, they both come with multiple years of control, with Barlow set to reach free agency after the 2024 season and Staumont one year later. However, relief pitching is always in high demand this time of year, with just about every contender looking to bolster their bullpen with an intriguing arm or two. The Royals can certainly opt for hanging onto them for future seasons, but relievers are also notoriously subject to fluctuations from season to season. If the offers are good enough, the Royals could give some thought to taking what’s in front of them before either pitcher suffers an injury or a dip in performance.

For now, though, both are having good seasons and would find plenty of interest from rival teams. Barlow is having his fourth straight solid season but has changed his results this year, getting fewer strikeouts and more ground balls. From 2019 through 2021, Barlow threw 174 2/3 innings with a 3.45 ERA, 30% strikeout rate, 10% walk rate and 40.8% ground ball rate. This year, he has a 2.36 ERA while getting strikeouts just 24% of the time but grounders at a 50.4% clip while also cutting his walk rate to 6.5%. All that’s come while pitching in high-leverage situations, as Barlow racked up 16 saves last year and 17 already this year. He’s making $2.4MM on the year and has two more passes through arbitration to go. Considering all of that, it’s unsurprising he’s in high demand around the league.

Staumont isn’t quite at Barlow’s level but is still interesting nonetheless. Since debuting in 2019, he’s thrown 141 1/3 MLB innings with a 3.18 ERA and 26.5% strikeout rate. His 12.5% walk rate and 33.6% grounder rate are both worse than league average, but he’s still plenty effective. He won’t reach arbitration until this winter, meaning he could fit into the budget of any team and would still have three years of control remaining.

All three of these players have reasons for other teams to be interested, the question will be how much the Royals are willing to part with them. The club has had aspirations for competing in recent years but hasn’t yet succeeded. Trading any of these three could hurt the roster in the immediate future but would also likely add prospects that could help a few years down the line.

AL Central Trade Rumors: Taylor, Braves, Plesac, Phillies, Fulmer, Sox, Robertson, Givens

By Mark Polishuk | July 30, 2022 at 6:11pm CDT

The Braves and Royals have already swung one trade together this month, and we’re a year removed from the huge-in-hindsight swap that sent Jorge Soler to Atlanta. Now, the Braves have interest in another K.C. outfielder, as MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (via Twitter) reports that Michael A. Taylor is under consideration. Taylor is delivering his usual excellent center field defense while also enjoying the best offensive season of his career, with a 111 wRC+ from hitting .275/.345/.395 in 262 plate appearances.

Since Taylor is under contract through 2023, he represents a longer-term option for an Atlanta club that could lose Adam Duvall in free agency this winter. Duvall is already out for the rest of the season due to wrist surgery, so Taylor could step right in as the right-handed hitting side of a left field platoon with Eddie Rosario. Taylor also provides cover in center field if star rookie Michael Harris starts to slump, but playing Taylor and Harris in the same outfield would also make for an excellent defensive pairing.

Royals Add Nick Pratto, Seven Others To Major League Roster

By Steve Adams and Anthony Franco | July 14, 2022 at 3:51pm CDT

The Royals announced Thursday that they’ve recalled top first base prospect Nick Pratto from Triple-A Omaha as one of eight players joining the Major League roster. Also coming to the Majors are catcher Sebastian Rivero, infielder Maikel Garcia and lefty Angel Zerpa, who’ve been recalled from Double-A Arkansas. Additionally, the Royals selected the contracts of infielder/outfielder Nate Eaton, catcher Freddy Fermin, outfielder Brewer Hicklen and infielder Michael Massey from Omaha.

The deluge of additions comes in conjunction with the previously announced slate of ten current Royals heading to the restricted list in advance of the team’s road series against the Blue Jays, where travel restrictions prevent unvaccinated athletes from entering Canada. Andrew Benintendi, Dylan Coleman, Hunter Dozier, Cam Gallagher, Kyle Isbel, Brad Keller, MJ Melendez, Whit Merrifield, Brady Singer and Michael A. Taylor are all now formally on the restricted list.

As MLB.com’s Anne Rogers tweets, the roster spots of starting pitchers placed on the restricted list (i.e. Singer, Keller) cannot be filled until four days after they last pitched, per MLB rules, which explains the discrepancy between eight players being added versus the ten who went on the restricted list.

The Royals indicated in today’s announcement that they expect to add “up to two more players” to the big league roster over the course of the series. They’ll make another addition tomorrow and another on Sunday. Any players whose contracts were selected to the 40-man roster for this series can be returned to Triple-A without first needing to clear waivers, due to their status as Covid-19-related replacements.

Pratto’s promotion is the most notable of the bunch. The 14th overall pick in the 2017 draft, the California high school product slowly progressed up the minor league ladder. He had an awful 2019 showing in High-A, and the cancelation of the following minor league season dealt his prospect stock a hit heading into 2021. The lefty hitter rebounded in a huge way last year, blasting 36 home runs in a season split between the minors top two levels. That came with some alarming strikeout numbers, but Pratto’s combination of power and huge walk totals was enough to put him firmly in top prospect consideration. He entered the season as Baseball America’s #43 overall farmhand.

Assigned to Omaha to open this year, Pratto has essentially picked up where he left off. He’s hit 17 more longballs and drawn walks at a massive 15.1% clip, but he’s fanned in over 30% of his trips to the plate. The end result — a .240/.374/.484 line through 337 plate appearances — is still excellent. The Royals nevertheless brought up fellow top prospect Vinnie Pasquantino ahead of Pratto, seemingly preferring he get a long leash to iron out the strikeout concerns in the upper minors. It’s very possible he’ll head back to Omaha after the Jays’ series, but Kansas City fans will at least get their first glimpse at a player they hope eventually develops into a middle-of-the-order bat.

It’ll almost certainly be a brief stint for the group of players temporarily added to the 40-man roster. Hicklen was called up briefly as a COVID replacement earlier in the season. Fermin, Massey and Eaton all have opportunities to make their big league debuts in the coming days. Fermin, a former international signee out of Venezuela, is hitting .242/.357/.422 with Omaha this season.

Massey, a fourth-round pick out of Illinois in 2019, was recently named the #8 prospect in the Kansas City system by Baseball America. He owns a .348/.408/.630 line with six homers in 24 games since being bumped up to Omaha last month, and he’ll almost certainly land a permanent 40-man roster spot by next offseason (when Kansas City would need to add him to keep him from being selected in the Rule 5 draft). Eaton is a former 21st-round pick out of VMI. BA recently slotted him 29th in the farm system in recognition of his .329/.388/.591 showing with the Storm Chasers.

Yankees Unlikely To Continue Pursuit Of Andrew Benintendi

By Steve Adams | July 14, 2022 at 12:16pm CDT

Royals outfielder Andrew Benintendi has reportedly been a target of both the Blue Jays and Yankees in the early stages of the summer trade market, but yesterday’s placement on the restricted list in advance of Kansas City’s trip to Toronto, due to vaccination status, is already having impact on his market. It seemed obvious at the time of that revelation that the Jays would be out of the mix for Benintendi, and Jon Heyman of the New York Post now reports that the Yankees are also unlikely to further pursue the outfielder. Presumably, the same is true of Benintendi’s teammate Michael A. Taylor, who joined him on the restricted list and has also reportedly been considered by the Yankees.

The Yankees are one of two teams (joining the Astros) who have taken a full roster on the road to Toronto this season. They still have three games in Toronto on the schedule in late September, and Blue Jays, currently in possession of the American League’s third Wild Card spot, represent a potential postseason opponent. Certainly, not all contending clubs are going to be dissuaded from pursuing unvaccinated players, but it’s also doubtful the Yankees and Jays will be the only ones taking this stance.

Outfield help is known to be a priority for a Yankees club that watched Aaron Hicks and, to a far greater extent, Joey Gallo struggle for much of the season. Hicks has righted the ship of late, hitting at a very strong .268/.376/.449 batting line over his past 149 trips to the plate, dating back to late May. He’s also gone 4-for-5 in stolen bases during that time, swatted five homers, and added four doubles and a couple triples. (Hicks was helped off the field during last night’s game after fouling a ball into his shin, but thankfully for both him and the team, imaging did not reveal a fracture.)

It’s been another story for Gallo, whom the Yankees would surely like to move over the next 19 days between now and the Aug. 2 trade deadline. Gallo’s .166/.287/.336 batting line is miles away from the .214/.340/.507 slash he posted with the Rangers from 2017 through July 27 of last year, when he was traded to the Bronx. The Yankees surely didn’t expect Gallo to begin hitting for a high average. However, a 50-point drop in his already perennially low mark, combined with an uptick in strikeout rate and decrease in walk rate and power output, has rendered Gallo one of the least-valuable hitters in baseball at the moment. For a 28-year-old hitter still in his prime, it’s a fairly remarkable decline.

Turning the focus back to Benintendi, Heyman further tweets that the Mets, who don’t have a Toronto series on their schedule and would thus only need to worry about a potential World Series matchup there, do have some interest in Benintendi. The Mets have cast a wide net in seeking upgrades, however, and Benintendi is surely just one of many players on their radar as they seek to bolster the roster.

Interest in Benintendi, Taylor and other players who are unable to travel to Toronto will vary from team to team. For the Yankees, it seems a clear and understandable roadblock. Other clubs will feel differently. There’s no denying the adverse effect it has on the Royals, however, due both to the fact that they’ll be without nearly 40% of their big league roster this weekend and to the fact that president of baseball operations Dayton Moore will have fewer interested parties to engage on the trade market.

Royals To Place Andrew Benintendi, Nine Others On Restricted List

By Darragh McDonald | July 13, 2022 at 5:00pm CDT

The Royals are traveling to Toronto tomorrow to begin a series against the Blue Jays but will be without a significant portion of their regular roster. The team announced to reporters, including Alec Lewis of The Athletic, that ten players will be placed on the restricted list. Since unvaccinated travelers are not allowed to cross the Canada-U.S. border, it’s become common for teams to place a handful of players on the restricted list before playing in Toronto. However, the quantity and quality of the Royals players included is noteworthy. The full list of names: Andrew Benintendi, Whit Merrifield, Hunter Dozier, Cam Gallagher, MJ Melendez, Brady Singer, Brad Keller, Kyle Isbel, Michael A. Taylor and Dylan Coleman.

Benintendi is one of the top trade chips this year, as he’s an impending free agent having a good season for a noncompetitive team. He landed the #2 slot on MLBTR’s recent list of top trade candidates, trailing only Willson Contreras. Benintendi is walking in 10.2% of his plate appearances while striking out just 14% of the time and hitting .317/.386/.401 on the year. That amounts to a wRC+ of 127, or 27% above league average. With the Royals currently 35-53, a record worse than all American League teams except for the A’s, they stand out as obvious deadline sellers.

Two weeks ago, it was reported that the Blue Jays were among the teams interested in acquiring Benintendi, which was a fairly logical match. Benintendi bats from the left side, whereas the Blue Jays have a right-handed heavy lineup. They acquired outfielder Raimel Tapia from the Rockies in an offseason trade as a way to try to balance things out. Unfortunately, he’s hit just .263/.289/.375 for an 84 wRC+ this year. Swapping Benintendi into Tapia’s role as part of an outfield/DH mix with George Springer, Teoscar Hernández and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. would have been a straightforward upgrade. However, this news would seem to more or less eliminate the chances of such a deal coming together since Benintendi would only be available to the Blue Jays for road games.

In the short term, the Royals will have to find replacements for these players in order get through the upcoming four-game series against the Blue Jays, which starts tomorrow. The corresponding moves are not known at this time.

Latest On Royals’ Outfield Outlook

By Steve Adams | July 12, 2022 at 11:42am CDT

Yesterday’s acquisition of Drew Waters gives the Royals a potential near-term option to evaluate in the outfield, and general manager J.J. Picollo spoke highly of Waters’ future when chatting with the Kansas City beat in the wake of the trade (link via Lynn Worthy of the Kansas City Star). Picollo called Waters a “plus defender” and a “true center fielder,” praising the switch-hitter’s speed and overall upside — even with Waters “still refining some skills” at the plate.

That’s a rather favorable characterization of a player who’s whiffed in 27.1% of his plate appearances during his third season at the Triple-A level, although to Waters’ credit, that strikeout rate is down considerably from his 36.1% mark in Triple-A in 2019 and from last year’s 30.9% pace. Struggles in the upper minors notwithstanding, Waters is still just 23 years old, has long been graded as a plus runner and potential asset in the outfield grass, and isn’t too far removed from a monster 2019 showing in Double-A. There’s plenty of reason to be optimistic about Waters as a player, even if his prospect star has dimmed in recent years.

The broader-reaching question for Royals fans — and for fans of teams seeking outfield upgrades around the league — is just what this trade will mean for the Royals’ outfield moving forward. The Waters acquisition isn’t likely to have much of a bearing on Andrew Benintendi’s future; as a productive and affordable free-agent-to-be on a last-place team, Benintendi was one of the likeliest trade candidates in all of baseball with or without Waters around. (We ranked him No. 2 on last week’s Top 50 trade candidate list.)

As MLBTR’s Darragh McDonald explored last month, however, Benintendi isn’t the only trade candidate in the Royals’ outfield. Center fielder Michael A. Taylor is having the finest season of his big league career, and he’s playing on an affordable two-year, $9MM contract. That makes it tempting for the Royals to keep him around into 2023, but Taylor’s greatest asset is his glove in center, and Picollo made clear the Royals view Waters as a plus option in center as well. There’s plenty of room for both Waters and Taylor to slot into the same outfield — especially assuming an eventual Benintendi deal — but it’s still of some note that the Royals would seemingly feel confident that Waters could step into Taylor’s shoes in the event of a trade, at least from a defensive standpoint.

Taylor has indeed drawn interest from other clubs, with MLB.com’s Jon Morosi tweeting last night that the Yankees are among those who’ve considered him in their search for outfield upgrades. Taylor, hitting .264/.340/.385 and once again playing Gold Glove-caliber defense in center, would immediately become the best defensive outfielder on the Yankees’ roster (or on the roster of the majority of MLB teams). New York has been playing Aaron Judge in center field more than ever before, but Taylor could conceivably push Judge back to right field if and when the Yankees inevitably move on from Joey Gallo.

The Yankees are also known to be interested in Benintendi, and Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News reported Sunday evening that the two sides have had “ongoing” talks regarding Benintendi for the past couple weeks. The asking price is believed to be high at present, Ackert adds. While the Yankees have now been linked to a pair of Kansas City outfielders, the Royals will surely receive interest in both Benintendi and Taylor from other clubs, just as New York will explore outfield options with other teams.

Further trades from the Royals aren’t necessarily a given. Picollo suggested that the team does not “feel the extreme need that we have to move any players,” though it’d be surprising if Benintendi, at the very least, didn’t change hands over the next three weeks. However, even if the Royals stand completely pat the rest of the way, Waters should get an earnest look in the big leagues before long, particularly with Kyle Isbel struggling and Edward Olivares only playing a limited role this year.

Trade Candidate: Michael A. Taylor

By Darragh McDonald | June 19, 2022 at 10:27pm CDT

At the end of September last year, as the season was winding down, Michael A. Taylor was about a week away from hitting free agency. The Royals, however, were determined to prevent that from happening and gave him a $9MM extension that would keep him around for another two years.

Taylor has never really done too much with his bat, finishing the 2021 season with a career batting line of .239/.293/.386 for a wRC+ of just 79. But the Royals were surely motivated to lock him up because of his tremendous defense. Taylor ended up finishing first among MLB center fielders in the Fielding Bible’s voting for 2021. His 15 Outs Above Average last year were the second-most in all of baseball, trailing only Manuel Margot’s 16. His 19 Defensive Runs Saved were also second in the league, trailing only the 20 racked up by Carlos Correa. His 13.3 Ultimate Zone Rating was easily the best, well ahead of Matt Chapman’s 8.7.

Kansas City making defense a priority made sense for a couple of reasons. First, the spacious confines of Kauffman Stadium make it so that defense is always important for the team. Secondly, the rebuilding club was set to feature a number of young and inexperienced pitchers, making any extra outs very important for building confidence and limiting workloads.

However, Taylor has bucked his career trends in a couple of ways here in 2022. For one thing, he’s having easily the best year of his career in terms of his bat. Through 47 games, he’s got an 11.2% walk rate, a great improvement over his 7% career mark. Similarly, he’s striking out in 22.4% of his plate appearances, well below his 29.9% career rate. That’s helped him produce a batting line of .272/.355/.401, which amounts to a wRC+ of 119. Prior to this year, Taylor’s wRC+ has been 80 or below in every season except for a 104 back in 2017.

But on the other hand, his defense doesn’t seem to be quite as elite as last year, at least in the eyes of the advanced metrics. OAA currently has him at 1 for the season, DRS at 3 and UZR at -0.2. Defensive metrics are notoriously fickle, meaning it’s possible that this is just small sample noise. Though Taylor is also 31 years old now, making it possible that 2021 was a peak that he’s started to come down from.

The Royals have a record of 23-42, one of the worst in the league, lining them up to be clear sellers at this year’s trade deadline. Taylor doesn’t absolutely have to be traded since his contract goes through 2023. The Royals could keep him around for another year and hope that they have better luck next year in their attempts to transition from rebuilding to contending. But there’s also an argument to be made that Taylor’s value is at its peak. He’s never been hitting anywhere near this level before and there’s a chance his excellent defensive skills have started to wane.

There’s also the possibility that two months of improved results with the bat won’t compel any team to part with significant prospects that would entice the Royals to pull a trigger on a trade. But then again, teams in search of help in center field don’t have a lot of options. Cedric Mullins and Bryan Reynolds have been constantly in trade rumors over the past year, but their respective teams have apparently been steadfast in maintaining high asking prices in any trade discussions. The Marlins have reportedly been making a strong push for Ramon Laureano, but without successfully getting the A’s to budge thus far. There aren’t many options beyond that group that are both exciting and available.

Coupled with that low supply is strong demand. The Marlins have been trying to upgrade in center field for a long time but without finding a deal to their liking. The Brewers just cut ties with Lorenzo Cain, leaving them with Tyrone Taylor and Jonathan Davis as their center field tandem. Cody Bellinger has rebounded from his nightmare 2021 but is still having a below-average season at the plate. The Astros and Phillies are getting okay results this year from Chas McCormick and Odubel Herrera, respectively, but could still look to supplement there. Perhaps the Yankees will look to bump Aaron Judge back into a corner outfield role to reduce his daily wear and tear. There’s also the possibility some team that doesn’t strictly need a center fielder just wants one to give their regular outfielders some occasional down time.

The Royals will have a decision to make between now and the August 2 trade deadline. Do they hang onto Taylor for another year or try to cash him in for some prospects while his value is high? Even if they lean towards the former option, it’s possible that the market forces push some team into making them an offer that makes them change their mind.

Royals Designate Dairon Blanco For Assignment

By Anthony Franco | June 3, 2022 at 4:25pm CDT

The Royals announced they’ve designated outfielder Dairon Blanco for assignment. Kansas City also reinstated center fielder Michael A. Taylor from the COVID-19 injured list, activated newly-acquired reliever Albert Abreu and optioned southpaw Foster Griffin to Triple-A Omaha.

Blanco spent about two weeks on the roster, coinciding with Taylor’s absence. The speedster picked up a pair of starts in center field and tallied his firsts seven big league plate appearances, collecting a pair of singles. Prior to his call-up, Blanco hit 113 times with the Storm Chasers and had a solid .263/.381/.442 slash line. The 29-year-old swiped 13 bases in only 31 games, hitting five home runs with an excellent 15% walk rate but a lofty 25.7% strikeout percentage.

Kansas City will have a week to trade Blanco or place him on waivers. A Cuba native, he didn’t make his affiliated debut until his age-25 season. His advanced age has diminished his prospect status, but he draws praise for blistering speed and has a solid track record in the upper minors.

Taylor returns after a couple weeks out of action, where he’ll presumably assume his standard everyday center field role. Signed to a two-year, $9MM extension shortly before he would’ve hit free agency last winter, he’s gotten off to a nice start this year. Taylor is hitting a roughly league average .238/.333/.337 with a pair of homers.

That kind of offensive production is more than sufficient considering his status as one of the sport’s top defensive outfielders. With the Royals at the bottom of the American League standings, Taylor could draw some trade interest this summer from contenders looking for center field help. He’s under cheap control through 2023, though, so the Royals won’t feel pressured to move him for a mediocre return.

Royals Select Dairon Blanco

By Steve Adams | May 19, 2022 at 10:47am CDT

The Royals announced Thursday that they’ve selected the contract of outfielder Dairon Blanco from Triple-A Omaha and placed outfielder Michael A. Taylor on the injured list. Royals skipper Mike Matheny told reporters last night that Taylor was in contact tracing under the league’s health-and-safety protocols, though it’s not clear yet whether he’s tested positive. Regardless, it’ll be Blanco assuming his spot on the roster at least in the short term. Kyle Isbel is in center for the Royals’ series finale against the White Sox today.

The 29-year-old Blanco will be making his big league debut if he gets into a game. Originally signed out of Cuba by the Athletics back in 2017, Blanco was one of two players the Royals received when trading lefty Jake Diekman to Oakland back in 2019. He had a rough go of it in Double-A following that trade, but Blanco has posted solid minor league numbers in 2021 (.277/.350/.441) and so far in 2022 (.263/.381/.442) between the Double-A and Triple-A levels.

Blanco swiped 41 bases in 55 tries last year, and he’s out to a 13-for-13 start in that department so far in 2022. At 29 years of age, he’s older than your standard “prospect,” though he still got a brief mention on FanGraphs’ 2021 rankings, where Eric Longenhagen credited him with 80-grade speed (on the 20-80 scale) and praised his strong exit velocities at the plate. He’s played center field and left field extensively with the Royals but has just one appearance in right.

It should be noted that the Royals did not specify Blanco as a Covid-related “substitute” or “replacement” when announcing they’d selected his contract. Each team’s wording tends to vary a bit on transactions of this nature, but they all typically make specific mention when someone is a pure substitute player. Those players can be sent back to the minor leagues without first passing through waivers. However, the Royals stating that Blanco’s contract has been formally selected ostensibly signals that there’s some permanence behind the move. Assuming Blanco is on the 40-man roster to stay, he’ll give the Royals some additional, optionable outfield depth for the foreseeable future.

As for Taylor, his placement on the Covid list could be due to a positive test, symptoms or continued contact tracing. If he did test positive, health protocols technically call for a 10-day absence, although players can return sooner than that with a pair of negative tests and approval from a joint MLB/MLBPA panel (one appointed medical expert from each party). In 117 plate appearances this season, Taylor is hitting .238/.333/.337 with strong marks in Defensive Runs Saved and Outs Above Average.

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