The Los Angeles Dodgers are in an enviable position. They are a team and a farm system filled with star power of which other teams could only achieve in their dreams.
But what happens when one of your past stars, a perennial fan favorite, just can’t get anything going at the plate a couple months into the season?
Chris Taylor has had some huge moments in his Dodgers career, most notably in the playoffs. His walk-off homer against the St Louis Cardinals that got them past the Wild Card round in 2021. His incredible run saving catch in Milwaukee in Game 7 of the 2018 NLCS. His leadoff home run in Game 1 of the 2017 WS.
Since his arrival to the team in 2016, he has been a key piece in the giant cog that is the Los Angeles Dodgers. His versatility slots him in almost any position in the field and in the lineup.
Unfortunately, the season has not started out as Chris Taylor had hoped. He currently sports a .071/.209/.071/.298 slash line with 28 strikeouts in 68 plate appearances, with no extra base hits. His batting average lands him as the worst in all of the Majors.
Because of his abysmal play, Taylor has only been in one game since the beginning of May. He currently is not slated to be in a game until Thursday, which would have been 10 days since he saw playing time.
In the coming days, the Dodgers will be forced to make a roster move, as veteran Jason Heyward is expected to return some time next week from his stint on the IL.
One option is to send down one of either James Outman, or Andy Pages.
Outman has also been struggling at the plate this season. He is batting .150, which is slightly better than Taylor, but is batting .095 over his last seven games.
Pages took the league by storm when he was first called up April 16. He hit .300 in the month of April and got to as high as a .338 BA, but also has cooled off at the plate as of late. Pages has only four hits scattered over his last nine games.
Sending either back to the minors to work on their offense seems like the most logical thing to do at this point. But that still won’t fix what’s going on with Taylor.
Another option is to send him down the minors for awhile to work on his swing. As he has more than five years service time, he would have to accept that placement. He could have a new found ‘injury’, take a beat and do rehab to get himself right. Or, the Dodgers could cut him from the team.
For his part, Taylor’s offense has always been streaky. And while he’s never been a high average kind of guy, he’s only batted .228 over the last two seasons.
Taylor is currently in year three of his four year, $60 deal with the Dodgers, with a team option for 2026. If things keep going as is that won’t even be considered. He has always been one to tinker with his swing, and although he had been working all offseason and through spring training on it, at this point, nothing is working.
Sitting atop the NL West with a 7.5 game lead, and with all that star power, the Dodgers can allow Taylor to work through his struggles. But how long they allow him that grace has yet to be seen.
Has Father Time just caught up with him, or will he turn it around? Fans hope there’s at least one more version of playoff heroics from CT3 still in there somewhere.
Think Blue Planning Committee 
You forgot to mention his three homers in game 5 of the 21 NLCS which temporarily kept LA from being eliminated by the Braves. He and Kike are the only Dodgers to ever accomplish that. Kike in 2016 against the Cubs, and there have only been done by 11 players. Babe Ruth is the only player who has done it twice, both in World Series play. Taylor still has value as a defensive replacement late in games. But I do believe at some point they are going to have to make a hard decision. They can release or trade him. He can only go to the minors if he agrees to it. Eating a contract with that much money on it is not unprecedented. They dumped Carl Crawford owing him around 40 million.
LikeLike
I say, take the pressure off him and pick up that 2026 option right now.
Of the 3 possibilities once JHey returns, I think the least likely is sending Pages to OKC. Not saying it won’t happen, but it won’t happen that soon.
That leaves Outman and CT3. They could really both use some every day at bats at AAA. Maybe something will click and they’ll regain confidence.
Activate JHey, option Outman and (with his consent) CT3 and bring up Vargas to start against lefties as well as some righties.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Send Outman down to reflect and refresh and regain his confidence,then bring him back well before playoffs to be our starting center fielder, and our team’s m.v.p .
LikeLiked by 1 person
Nice dream, won’t happen, too much swing and miss.
LikeLike
not sure we need taylor and kiki, both add defence but no offence . Real hole in this team is the outfield, and counting on Heyward could be a fools game, as based on his career, last year was probably a one off. Leave the young outfielders, hope they can contribute and send Taylor down. Kiki and Rojas can look after the infield and jhey can fight it out with the young guys. Sooner or later we will have to start playing competitive teams (over 500) and we will need a bit of production from the bottom 3 in the line up.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Kike and Taylor’s value lies in their versatility. Whatever they bring to the offense is a plus. Sadly, both of them are struggling this season. Kike seems to be having the same kind of start he had in Boston last year which eventually led to his trade back to the Dodgers. Of the two, Kike right now is the better option. Although it would upset some people, the best option would be to simply cut Taylor. He could accept a minor league assignment, and it would be best for him and the team. But I find that scenario highly unlikely. As for Heyward, don’t sell him short. He is in excellent shape, and he is a gold glover in the outfield, so the defense is solid. He hit well last year and had a decent spring. I see no reason why he cannot be close to the same player he was then.
LikeLiked by 1 person
right now we have a team of free agents, one draft pick and a bunch of versatile players who can’t hit. We need Rajas but not both of the versatile guys at the expense of a seventh position player. You may be right about Heyward but not at the expense of one of the other outfielders. Pages looks OK so far and outman looks like a good triple A player. His time is just about up. In any event I wouldn’t want to give up on the young guys right yet , at the expense of a over the hill versatile player.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Heyward is replacing Outman. He isn’t going to take playing time from Pages or Hernandez who are going to be the starting outfielders no matter what. Kike will take his place against LHP. Taylor in my opinion should be released. The money doesn’t matter. He is not earning his paycheck by a longshot. Rojas can fill in at SS and 3rd when he isn’t playing second. Kike will be staying as he at least has gotten some hits. But I still think they need at least one power bat off of the bench. There is no one on the bench who can come up and put one in the seats.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Love to see Vargas get some MLB at bats. I would either with his permission send Taylor down or cut him and send Outman down to get his swing and head straight. Keep Pages up. Reward for performance just like the rest of us.
LikeLike
Vargas has proved he can hit AAA pitching. Unlike some, I am not confident nor convinced, he can do the same thing in the majors. Mark, over on LADodgertalk, thinks Vargas will succeed at the MLB level. From what I have seen, I am not all that convinced. But I give him a mulligan for his problems last season because of his spring injury to his hand. He is at best, and average defender in the outfield and doesn’t really play anywhere but left.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I think this potentially could be a pivotal point for this team. We all wish CT3 wasn’t putting us in this position, but I honestly think the front office needs to try and get him to agree to go to OKC for a bit. I don’t believe trading him or cutting him would help. I honestly believe it would hurt more in the clubhouse as he’s been one of the mainstays in that clubhouse since he’s gotten to the team. Cutting him could cause some internal consternation that this team does not need. The best storyline for everyone is that CT3 went to the front office asking to go down for reps. Pages probably deserves to stay another month. Outman probably needs to go down for a few weeks. For all salivating at Miguel Vargas we’ve seen this show before. Give him the off speed at MLB level he’s lost. Outman was basically Babe Ruth at OKC 2 years ago and now we are talking about sending him down. The comments about the Dodgers eating Carl Crawfords salary are no way near similar to Taylor’s. Again Taylor has been a mainstay in the dugout. Crawford was not. Crawford was always injured where a paper cut was liable to keep him out of the lineup for a month. This is different and I’m hoping CT3 finds his groove because the Dodgers will need his grit come playoff time.
LikeLiked by 2 people
The working world is mostly a meritocracy. Roberts hasn’t run the team that way which is why they lose in the playoffs. People need to be held accountable for their performance or lack of in order to meet and possibly exceed their potential. Leo the Lip said nice guys finish last.. Dodgers need a driver manager
LikeLike
But who played the worse in the playoffs against the Diamondbacks? Freddie and Mookie were pitiful. In 21 the big stars all had bad series, the two best players against the Braves. Bellinger, who had a terrible regular season, and Taylor, who is a perennial sub. Pollock hit two homers in a game in that series. But Turner, Seager, and Betts all had bad series. They lost because the other team played better. In 21, their best pitchers were hurt or in the case of Scherzer, saying they were hurt. I attribute the last two playoff losses to the layoff. Five days with no competitive games is a long time. And please, give the other team’s some credit for playing their best. The playoffs are a total crapshoot. Anyone who thinks they are not is sadly mistaken.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Agree with you mostly. Everyone gives Robert’s a pass because of the Dodgers regular season record. And I agree that last year there was no chance due to pitching injuries. Management sets the tone. You must get guys to understand in playoff games against high quality pitching you must generate runs. Watch this team in extra innings. No one sacrifices. Their wins in that are have been mainly a double. Poor baseball skills in sacrificing. But the manager must set that expectation! Play old fashion baseball when u r in a fight against outstanding pitching. No body consistently hits an ace. So u must set the team mentality to scrap and claw. This team has high expectations but it is elitist. It will lose to a team at parity that plays fundamentally sound. Dodgers have a huge run differential but they just pile on against mediocre pitching.
LikeLike
Your last sentence is why I pay absolutely no attention to the run differential stat.
LikeLike
KT3 needs to man up and accept a trip to OKC to work on his hitting. He must realize that he will only be hurting the team by being stubborn and refusing to go to OKC. The only way he get any better is to get AB’s everyday for a few weeks. Outman also could use a stint at OKC. Hopefully Heyward comes back strong and helps the outfield get better. Dodgers are facing some tough decisions, especially with KT3.
LikeLiked by 1 person
CT-3. Taylor needs regular AB’s. Last night was only his second game action this month. Outman needs to work on his hitting and doing it at OKC would be better for him. Heyward is a proven major leaguer. He did a good job last season for the team. He is a better defender than anyone who is playing the outfield right now and has the gold gloves to prove it. Last night was a bump in the road for Glasnow. Since none of us has inside info on what the front office and brain trust are thinking, we can only guess what moves are in store over the next few weeks. It is a certainty that Heyward will be activated, most likely either today, or tomorrow. With a RHP going today, Montas, I think he is activated this afternoon, and Outman is sent to AAA. As for Vargas, he has proved nothing except he is a very good hitter at AAA. He should get another chance, but until they settle the Taylor problem, he stays at AAA.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Good for J-Hey. Big homer tacking on at the end of the game. Lux, Heyward, Pages and Kike all got hits. Freeman the only player without a hit. Freddie needs a day off.
LikeLike