| Taylor Walls | |
|---|---|
 Walls in 2017 with the Hudson Valley Renegades | |
| Tampa Bay Rays – No. 6 | |
| Shortstop /Second baseman | |
| Born: (1996-07-10)July 10, 1996 (age 28) Cordele, Georgia, U.S. | |
Bats: Switch Throws: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| May 22, 2021, for the Tampa Bay Rays | |
| MLB statistics (through 2024 season) | |
| Batting average | .188 |
| Home runs | 18 |
| Runs batted in | 98 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
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Davis Taylor Walls (born July 10, 1996) is an American professionalbaseballshortstop for theTampa Bay Rays ofMajor League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2021.
Walls attendedCrisp County High School inCordele, Georgia, where he playedbaseball.[1] In 2014, his senior year, hebatted over .400 while pitching to a 0.70earned run average (ERA).[2] Undrafted in the2014 Major League Baseball draft, Walls enrolled atFlorida State University (FSU), where he playedcollege baseball for theFlorida State Seminoles.
In 2015, during Walls' freshman year at Florida State, he earned a starting spot, and started all 65 of FSU's games, batting .220 with 22runs batted in (RBIs) and sevenstolen bases.[3][4] As a sophomore in 2016, Walls slashed .355/.479/.516 with sixhome runs, 46 RBIs, and 14 stolen bases over 63 starts, earning All-ACC Second Team honors.[5][6] In 2017, his junior season, Walls started 68 of FSU's 69 games, hitting .273 with eight home runs and 47 RBIs.[7] After the season, Walls was selected by theTampa Bay Rays in the third round of the2017 Major League Baseball draft.[8][9]
Walls signed with the Rays and made his professional debut with theHudson Valley Renegades of theLow–ANew York–Penn League, batting .213 with one home run over 46 games.[10] In 2018, Walls played with theBowling Green Hot Rods of theSingle–AMidwest League (with whom he earned All-Star honors), slashing .304/.393/.428 with six home runs, 57 RBI, and 31 stolen bases over 120 games.[11] Walls started the 2019 season with theCharlotte Stone Crabs of theHigh–AFlorida State League, being named an All-Star. He missed three weeks during the season due to a quadriceps injury.[12] In June, he was promoted to theMontgomery Biscuits of theDouble–ASouthern League, with whom he finished the season.[13] Over 96 games between the two clubs, Walls batted .270/.343/.452 with ten home runs, 46 RBI, and 28 stolen bases.[14]
Walls did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of theCOVID-19 pandemic.[15] On November 20, 2020, the Rays added Walls to their40-man roster to protect him from theRule 5 draft.[16] To begin the 2021 season, he was assigned to theDurham Bulls of theTriple-A East.[17]
On May 22, 2021, Walls was promoted to the major leagues for the first time.[18][19] He made his debut that day and recorded his first MLB hit, a double off ofToronto Blue Jays starterRobbie Ray, during the game.[20] Walls ended the 2021 season with Tampa Bay slashing .211/.314/.296 with one home run, 15 RBI, and ten doubles over 152at-bats.[21]
Walls made 142 appearances for the Rays in 2022, slashing .172/.268/.285 with eight home runs, 33 RBI, and 10 stolen bases.[22] In 2023, Walls played in 99 games for Tampa Bay, hitting .201/.305/.333 with 8 home runs, and new career–highs in RBI (36), and stolen bases (22). Following the season on October 30, Walls underwent hip surgery to relieve discomfort and repair a labrum tear.[23]
Walls began the 2024 season on the injured list as he recover from surgery, and was transferred to the 60–day injured list on April 20.[24] He was activated from the injured list on June 7.[25]
Walls' wife, Hallie, gave birth to their daughter in April 2021.[26] Their second child, a son, was born in September 2023.[27]
In March 2022, Wallsretweeted a statement fromRon DeSantis criticizing theNCAA's decision to allowLia Thomas tocompete in women's swimming competitions. Rays managerKevin Cash said he spoke to Walls about the tweet but Walls told media that he did not think he "did anything wrong ... It’s just my opinion. And feel free to disagree, there’s no harm done. I don’t have any hard feelings towards anyone else. And that’s kind of it."[28]