Twins Trade for Gold Glove Center Fielder, Michael A. Taylor
The Minnesota Twins have made another offseason move, this time trading away two minor league pitchers for 31-year-old center fielder, Michael A. Taylor, who won a gold glove for the Kansas City Royals in 2021.
The Twins are acquiring OF Michael A. Taylor from the Royals for LHP Evan Sisk and RHP Steven Cruz, per source.
— Mark Feinsand (@Feinsand) January 23, 2023
Who is Michael A. Taylor?
A below average hitter (.241 BA, .677 OPS) who clearly has a lot of upside on defense, Taylor is the perfect backup center fielder for an oft-injured Byron Buxton, especially when you factor in the games Buxton will play at DH next season.
Taylor has played in over 800 MLB games and sat in the batter’s box for over 2,700 plate appearances. He played most of his career with the Washington Nationals but got a lot more playing time in his two seasons with the Royals.
| Year | Age | Tm | Lg | G | PA | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | CS | BB | SO | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS | OPS+ | TB | GDP | HBP | SH | SF | IBB | Pos | Awards |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 23 | WSN | NL | 17 | 43 | 39 | 5 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 17 | .205 | .279 | .359 | .638 | 75 | 14 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8/H9 | |
| 2015 | 24 | WSN | NL | 138 | 511 | 472 | 49 | 108 | 15 | 2 | 14 | 63 | 16 | 3 | 35 | 158 | .229 | .282 | .358 | .640 | 73 | 169 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 9 | *87H/9 | |
| 2016 | 25 | WSN | NL | 76 | 237 | 221 | 28 | 51 | 11 | 0 | 7 | 16 | 14 | 3 | 14 | 77 | .231 | .278 | .376 | .654 | 71 | 83 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8H/97 | |
| 2017 | 26 | WSN | NL | 118 | 432 | 399 | 55 | 108 | 23 | 3 | 19 | 53 | 17 | 7 | 29 | 137 | .271 | .320 | .486 | .806 | 104 | 194 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | *8/H9 | |
| 2018 | 27 | WSN | NL | 134 | 385 | 353 | 46 | 80 | 22 | 3 | 6 | 28 | 24 | 6 | 29 | 116 | .227 | .287 | .357 | .644 | 69 | 126 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | *8H/3D | |
| 2019 | 28 | WSN | NL | 53 | 97 | 88 | 10 | 22 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 34 | .250 | .305 | .364 | .669 | 73 | 32 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8H/9 | |
| 2020 | 29 | WSN | NL | 38 | 99 | 92 | 11 | 18 | 6 | 0 | 5 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 27 | .196 | .253 | .424 | .676 | 79 | 39 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 789/HD | |
| 2021 | 30 | KCR | AL | 142 | 528 | 483 | 58 | 118 | 16 | 1 | 12 | 54 | 14 | 7 | 33 | 144 | .244 | .297 | .356 | .653 | 77 | 172 | 9 | 5 | 2 | 5 | 0 | *8/HD | GG |
| 2022 | 31 | KCR | AL | 124 | 456 | 414 | 49 | 105 | 10 | 3 | 9 | 43 | 4 | 2 | 35 | 109 | .254 | .313 | .357 | .670 | 90 | 148 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 0 | *8/HD1 | |
| 9 Yrs | 840 | 2788 | 2561 | 311 | 618 | 113 | 12 | 74 | 281 | 95 | 30 | 191 | 819 | .241 | .296 | .381 | .677 | 81 | 977 | 37 | 13 | 10 | 13 | 14 | |||||
| 162 Game Avg. | 162 | 538 | 494 | 60 | 119 | 22 | 2 | 14 | 54 | 18 | 6 | 37 | 158 | .241 | .296 | .381 | .677 | 81 | 188 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 | |||||
| WSN (7 yrs) | 574 | 1804 | 1664 | 204 | 395 | 87 | 8 | 53 | 184 | 77 | 21 | 123 | 566 | .237 | .291 | .395 | .686 | 80 | 657 | 22 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 14 | |||||
| KCR (2 yrs) | 266 | 984 | 897 | 107 | 223 | 26 | 4 | 21 | 97 | 18 | 9 | 68 | 253 | .249 | .304 | .357 | .661 | 83 | 320 | 15 | 7 | 4 | 8 | 0 | |||||
| NL (7 yrs) | 574 | 1804 | 1664 | 204 | 395 | 87 | 8 | 53 | 184 | 77 | 21 | 123 | 566 | .237 | .291 | .395 | .686 | 80 | 657 | 22 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 14 | |||||
| AL (2 yrs) | 266 | 984 | 897 | 107 | 223 | 26 | 4 | 21 | 97 | 18 | 9 | 68 | 253 | .249 | .304 | .357 | .661 | 83 | 320 | 15 | 7 | 4 | 8 | 0 | |||||
Taylor adds to an already impressive defensive outfield and simultaneously makes Max Kepler’s status in right field even more questionable. Falvey turned down an offer from the Royals last week that would have sent starting pitcher, Josh Winder, to Kansas City.
Dealing Evan Fisk and Steven Cruz is much preferable to that.
Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan
More About:Minnesota Twins