| Michael A. Taylor | |
|---|---|
_(cropped).jpg) Taylor with theWashington Nationals in 2018 | |
| Center fielder | |
| Born: (1991-03-26)March 26, 1991 (age 34) Lake Forest, Illinois, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| August 12, 2014, for the Washington Nationals | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 28, 2025, for the Chicago White Sox | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .232 |
| Home runs | 109 |
| Runs batted in | 388 |
| Stolen bases | 128 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
Michael Anthony Taylor[1] (born March 26, 1991) is an American former professionalbaseballcenter fielder. He played inMajor League Baseball (MLB) for theWashington Nationals,Kansas City Royals,Minnesota Twins,Pittsburgh Pirates, andChicago White Sox.
Taylor was selected by the Nationals in the sixth round of the2009 MLB draft, made his MLB debut with them in 2014, and was a member of the2019 World Series championship team. He spent most of his career with the Nationals, where he was a strong performer in postseason play. In 2017, he became the first MLB player in history with four or more RBIs in back-to-back playoff games.[2] In 2019, he helped spark the team's comeback in theWild Card Game and contributed throughout their World Series-winning postseason run. Generally considered an elite defender, he won aGold Glove Award andFielding Bible Award in 2021.[3]
Taylor was born to military parents; his father, Anthony Taylor, was a logistics officer for 22 years in theU.S. Army. Taylor has four older sisters. He attendedWestminster Academy inFort Lauderdale, Florida, and played for the school's baseball team. One teammate wasMatt den Dekker, with whom he would play for theWashington Nationals in the2015 and2016 seasons.[4]
TheWashington Nationals selected Taylor in the sixth round of the2009 Major League Baseball draft.[5] He forwent a commitment to theUniversity of North Florida to go professional with the Nationals.[6] Taylor did not make his minor league debut in the 2009 season but served as a versatile infielder for theGulf Coast League Nationals in 2010, committing 21 errors across three positions: shortstop,second baseman, andthird baseman. He appeared in 38 games and batted .195 with one home run.[7]
At the beginning of fall instructional league play in 2010, Taylor was told he would be switching positions from shortstop tocenter fielder, after a hand injury had limited his development in the infield in his first year in the Nationals' minor league system. Beginning at the Class AHagerstown Suns in 2011, Taylor exclusively appeared as an outfielder, a trend that continued with the Class A-AdvancedPotomac Nationals in 2012 and 2013.[8] His offensive output improved as well, as he batted .263 with 10 home runs in 133 games with the Potomac Nationals in 2013, earning him honors as the team's Player of the Year, before heading toPuerto Rican winter baseball to play for theIndios de Mayaguez.[9]
Taylor was added to theWashington Nationals' 40-man roster on November 20, 2013, after the end of the2013 season.[10] At the time, he ranked as the Nationals' fourth-best prospect according toMLB Pipeline,[11] and seventh-best according toBaseball America.[12]
On August 10, Taylor was called up by the Nationals whenSteven Souza was placed on the 15-day disabled list.[13] On August 12, he made his Major League debut against theNew York Mets inCiti Field, where he collected his first major league hit, a single off pitcherRafael Montero. He also hit his first major league home run, a two-run homer against pitcherCarlos Torres, that night.[14] Taylor was optioned back to the AAASyracuse Chiefs on August 23, after the Nationals selected veteranNate Schierholtz's contract.[15] He was again recalled after rosters expanded in September and was in center field on September 28, in the final game of the2014 regular season, whenJordan Zimmermann completed the firstno-hitter in Nationals history.[16]
Taylor was ranked third among Nationals prospects by the end of 2014 byMLB Pipeline[17] and second byBaseball America.[12]
Taylor opened the2015 season as the Nationals' starting center fielder whileDenard Span was on the disabled list. Despite starting the season well by sporting a .279 batting average, he was optioned to the Triple-ASyracuse Chiefs on April 19 to make room on the active roster for Span.[18] He was recalled on April 29 whenReed Johnson was placed on the disabled list.[19] During an away game against theArizona Diamondbacks on May 13, Taylor substituted for right fielderBryce Harper after Harper was ejected in the seventh inning. In his first at-bat in the ninth inning, he came up with the bases loaded for the first time in his career and hit a go-aheadgrand slam, effectively clinching the game for the Nationals.[20][21]
On August 20, Taylor hit the second-longest home run of the 2015 MLB season, crushing a pitch fromColorado Rockies starterYohan Flande 493 feet into the stands atCoors Field.[22][23][24] Taylor suffered a right knee injury on August 27 after slamming into the wall while attempting to run down a line drive off the bat ofMelvin Upton, Jr.,[25] but he was healthy enough to make a pinch-hitting appearance in the tenth inning against theAtlanta Braves on September 4.[26] He hit a three-run home run for a walk-off victory over the visiting Braves.[27]
On September 8, Taylor hit a "Little League grand slam" off ofNew York Mets pitcherMatt Harvey after a bases-loaded single got by center fielderYoenis Céspedes and went to the wall. He was not credited with an inside-the-park home run, with an error being charged to Céspedes on the play.[28] Taylor himself allowed an inside-the-park grand slam on a similar play just weeks later, as he dove and missed a ball hit byPhiladelphia Phillies rookieAaron Altherr in a September 25 game, unloading the bases and allowing Altherr to score on his own hit. The play was scored a home run for Altherr.[29]
Taylor finished the 2015 season batting .229/.282/.358 with 14 home runs, 16 stolen bases, and a .640on-base plus slugging percentage in 472 at bats over 138 games.[30]
Taylor opened the2016 season as theWashington Nationals' fourth outfielder, but an Opening Day injury to starting center fielderBen Revere quickly thrust him into an everyday spot in the lineup.[31]
On June 22, Taylor had what a writer for theNew England Sports Network described as possibly "the worst game in baseball history." He had five swinging strikeouts against theLos Angeles Dodgers and a fielding error that cost the Nationals the game when he failed to get his glove to the ground in time while charging a routine groundball hit byYasiel Puig in the bottom of the ninth inning. The Nationals were up by one run, 3–2, and the error resulted in Taylor's future Nationals teammateHowie Kendrick, who was on first base for the Dodgers at the time, and Puig both scoring for a walk-off Los Angeles victory.[32]
Taylor was optioned to theSyracuse Chiefs to make room for the reactivation of closerJonathan Papelbon on July 4,[33] but he was recalled after appearing in just one game for the Chiefs after first basemanRyan Zimmerman was placed on the disabled list on July 8.[34] Taylor's return to the major leagues was short-lived, however, as he was optioned back to Syracuse after going 0-for-4 with two strikeouts in a loss against theSan Diego Padres on July 24.[35]
Taylor rejoined the major league team after a little more than a month with the Chiefs, where he posted a meager .205 batting average over 31 games, being recalled August 29. He found himself once again relegated to a bench role,[36] with rookieTrea Turner taking over in center field for the ineffectual Revere.[37][38] He finished out the season batting .231./278/.376 with a .654on-base plus slugging percentage, seven home runs, and 16 stolen bases in 221 at bats in 76 major league games, and he was among the players named to the Nationals' playoff roster in the2016 National League Division Series, where he received two at-bats and struck out in both appearances.[39]
Coming off what he described as a "pretty disappointing" 2016 season,[39] Taylor found himself in the familiar role of backup outfielder for the Nationals in the2017 season, withAdam Eaton taking over in center field andTrea Turner shifting to the shortstop position. However, for the third straight season, Taylor found himself in the role of everyday center fielder after the presumptive starter was injured early in the year, with Eaton tearing ligaments in his knee while running the bases in late April.[40] Given regular playing time, Taylor resurrected a batting average that had hovered below .200 in limited appearances prior to Eaton's season-ending injury, hitting .290 in May and June while demonstrating above-average power.[41][42]
Taylor landed on the major league disabled list for the first time in his career on July 7 with an oblique strain.[43] He spent more than a month on the disabled list, with rookieBrian Goodwin taking over as the Nationals' regular center fielder in Taylor's absence.[44] Upon Taylor's return to the team on August 13, after rehab assignments with the minor leaguePotomac Nationals andHarrisburg Senators, Taylor reclaimed his spot in the starting lineup.
Two years to the day after his "Little League grand slam" against theNew York Mets, on September 8, 2017, Taylor hit a bases-loaded line drive to center field offPhiladelphia Phillies pitcherJake Thompson that a leapingOdúbel Herrera was unable to snare. Taylor circled the bases on the play, which was scored an inside-the-park grand slam — the first inMajor League Baseball sinceAaron Altherr's on September 25, 2015. In the same game, Taylor also singled twice and tripled, driving in a total of five runs, and recorded an outfield assist at home to preserve the Nationals' lead in the eventual 11–10 victory.[45] Taylor finished the regular season batting .271/.320/.486 with 19 home runs, 53 RBIs, and 17 stolen bases in 399 at bats.[1]
In Game 4 of the2017 NLDS against theChicago Cubs, Taylor hit a grand slam to put the Nationals ahead 5–0 and stave off elimination. It was the first grand slam in Nationals post-season history.[1] Taylor hit a go-ahead three-run homer on the second inning of Game 5 (which the Nationals ultimately lost 9–8).[46]
In 2018 Taylor struggled at the plate to start the season, batting .223 in April and .183 in May, but hit his stride in June, batting .444. He also led the major leagues in stolen bases as late as June 21. However, Taylor lost significant playing time due to the return ofAdam Eaton and the strong performance ofJuan Soto, relegating Taylor to fourth outfielder status.[47] Taylor struggled again at the plate with limited playing time in the second half of the season,[48] and finished 2018 batting .227/.287/.357, with six home runs, 28 RBIs, and 24 stolen bases in 363 at bats.[49]
In the 2018–2019 offseason, Taylor worked with Nationals hitting coachKevin Long to change his stance and swing to generate more contact, and practiced his new swing in theDominican Winter League.[48] NationalsGeneral ManagerMike Rizzo said in December 2018 that he believes Taylor could be afive-tool player if he can make more contact.[48]
In June 2019, Taylor was sent down to Double-A Harrisburg for more consistent playing time to work on his offense.[50] He was called back up to the major league roster in September[51] and finished the regular season batting .250/.305/.364 with one home run and three RBIs in 97 plate appearances with the Nationals.[52]
Taylor was a major contributor to the 2019 Nationals' playoff run.[53] In the2019 Wild Card Game, he pinch-hit for pitcherStephen Strasburg and worked a 3-2 count before drawing a hit by pitch fromJosh Hader, sparking the 8th inning rally which culminated in Taylor scoring onJuan Soto's bases-clearing, go-ahead double. When center fielderVictor Robles was sidelined with an injury in NLDS Game 2, Taylor took over as the starting center fielder for the remainder of the series, getting a hit in each game and securing the series-winning out with a diving catch in Game 5.[53] He also started the first two games of theNLCS, going 2-for-4 with a home run in Game 2.
In Game 2 of the2019 World Series, Taylor hit a solo home run in the top of the ninth, becoming the 39th player to homer in his first ever World Series at-bat.[54] With the home run the Nationals became the first team in World Series history to have a home run in the seventh, eighth and ninth innings of a game.[55]
After batting .196/.253/.424 with five home runs and 16 RBIs over 38 games in the shortened2020 season, Taylor was placed on outright waivers by the Nationals. The team announced October 15, 2020, that he had cleared waivers and elected free agency rather than accept an assignment to the minor leagues.[56]
On November 30, 2020, Taylor signed a one-year contract worth $1.75 million with theKansas City Royals.[57]
In 2021, Taylor batted .244/.297/.356 with 12 home runs and 54 RBIs while playing a career high 142 games.[58] He won aGold Glove Award and aFielding Bible Award as a center fielder, having led all AL center fielders with 11 assists and ranked third with 351 putouts and a .992 fielding percentage.[59][60] At the end of the season, the Royals signed Taylor to a two-year, $9 million contract extension.[61]
_(cropped).jpg)
In 2022, Taylor played in 124 games for Kansas City, hitting .254/.313/.357 with 9 home runs and 43 RBI.[62]
On January 23, 2023, the Royals traded Taylor to theMinnesota Twins in exchange for minor league pitchersSteven Cruz andEvan Sisk.[63] In 129 appearances for Minnesota, he slashed .220/.278/.442 with a career-high 21 home runs, 51 RBI, and 13 stolen bases.[64] Taylor became a free agent following the season.
On March 16, 2024, Taylor signed a one-year, $4 million contract with thePittsburgh Pirates.[65] He played in 113 games for Pittsburgh, slashing .193/.253/.290 with five home runs, 21 RBI, and 12 stolen bases. Taylor wasdesignated for assignment by the Pirates on September 24.[66] He was released the next day.[67]
On February 12, 2025, Taylor signed a one-year, $1.95 million contract with theChicago White Sox for the 2025 season.[68] He announced his retirement on the final day of the season.[69]
Taylor announced his retirement to members of the media on September 28, 2025, before the final game of the season versus the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park, a place he played for many years. He said he had decided a few months earlier to retire to spend more time with his family, though he was interested in coaching down the road. “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.[70] He received multiple standing ovations from the Nationals Park crowd.[71]
He is married to his wife Brianna and has two children, Naomi and Deuce.[72] The couple have two children.[70]