The Royals Have a Budding Michael A. Taylor Problem
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Let's get this out of the way: the Kansas City Royals made several moves before, near and at the 2022 MLB trade deadline. Were they the right moves? That's up for interpretation but nonetheless, multiple players were shipped out of town and the organization's farm system undoubtedly received an influx of talent.
Still, though, there's a lot of continued chatter about whether the Royals should have done more. While they swapped out some big-leaguers in widely-anticipated moves (Andrew Benintendi, Carlos Santana, Whit Merrifield), there was a handful of other trades that could've netted additional value. That applies to pitchers such as Brad Keller, Josh Staumont and Scott Barlow, but it also applies to outfielder Michael A. Taylor.
Taylor, who turned 31 earlier this year and will be 32 by the time next season begins, was a very appealing trade asset at the deadline. In the final hours and minutes of his trade eligibility on Aug. 2, Taylor was having one of the best seasons of his career. His slash line (.280/.352/.395), OPS (.747) and wRC+ (114) were either among the best of his career or were the best of his career. He was walking at a career-best 9.9% clip and striking out at a career-low 23.4% rate. At the plate, Taylor was legitimately a slightly above-average player.
That's just one element of the three-pronged case a potential suitor had for acquiring Taylor. The second one was his defense, as the reigning American League Gold Glove winner was still playing a strong center field in one of the most spacious parks in all of baseball. He was also combining his offense and defense with a genuinely good contract. Taylor's current salary, $4.5 million, is the exact same in 2023. Per FanGraphs, despite his recent struggles (more on that in a second), he's been worth $9.2M already this year and was worth $15.7M last season. Combine all of that, and the Royals had a serious trade piece on their hands.
Instead of moving Taylor, the Royals hung on to him. The decision was a bit puzzling at the time, as the odds of the club being ready to contend next season are remarkably low and the odds of Taylor being either a Royal or a valuable contributor in his age-33 or older campaigns should he sign another extension are low. Keeping him, then floating his name in trade discussions during the winter not only ran the risk of lessening his value via less time under club control but also via him entering a serious slump and tanking his numbers.
The Royals are dealing with the worst of both worlds right now, as Taylor will have a half-season less of availability this winter and his numbers are currently bottoming out.
Since the trade deadline passed, a 22-game sample size, Taylor has been one of the worst qualified hitters in baseball. He's hitting just .194 with a .445 OPS and 25 wRC+. His power is completely nonexistent, as he boasts just one extra-base hit and is posting a .014 ISO. His alleged improvements in regard to his approach at the plate have regressed completely, leading to a 3.9 BB% and 31.6 K%. Taylor's season-wide numbers would still qualify as some of the best of his career (second-best OPS and wRC+ to only his 2017 campaign), but the recent struggles are startling.
It's possible that this slump, one that's inching closer and closer to a monthlong dry spell at the plate, could be just that: a slump. If Taylor snaps out of it for the final month of the 2022 season, his numbers will rebound and still look quite respectable in the grand scheme of things. On the other hand, his track record suggests that he could be turning back into the Taylor of old. If that's the case, the Royals have a legitimate problem on their hands. His contract may be cheap and his defense is still quality, but fielding such a poor hitter in 2023 with younger options available makes very little sense. Kansas City's ability to trade Taylor in the offseason is becoming more difficult, as is its ability to justify playing him. For the Royals' sake, they'll be hoping that this is merely a cold spell.
