Drafted in the 10th round (312th overall) by the Houston Astros in 2018 (signed for $70,000).
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Taylor was in 2017 selected in the 27th round by the Twins as a draft-eligible sophomore, but chose to return to school for his junior season after a solid summer in the Cape Cod League. He’s mostly a three true-outcomes player with big lefthanded power but a lot of swing and miss. He fits best as a corner outfielder.
Top Rankings
Organization Prospect Rankings
TRACK RECORD: A 27th-round pick of the Twins as a sophomore, Taylor hit 13 home runs for the Tide as a junior, moving into ninth on the school's career home run list (38). He also ranks sixth in career walks for Alabama (110). A hamate injury barely slowed Taylor, as he hit 14 home runs in his first full pro season.
SCOUTING REPORT: Taylor swings and misses baseballs at a frightening rate. In 2019, nearly 40 percent of Taylor's plate appearances ended in strikeouts. However, when he does make contact, he hits the ball in the air and he clears fences. He has the best raw power in the Astros farm system now that Yordan Alvarez has graduated. Taylor also has a plus arm and his average speed works in right field—he's a fringe-average defender. Taylor's plate demeanor doesn't help his swing-and-miss tendencies. Umpires aren't always thrilled with his demonstrative disagreements with called strikes. Very rarely do bottom-of-the-scale hitters with 70 power play in the majors—usually either the hit tool gets better or the player doesn't make it. So Taylor has to figure out how to make enough contact to be at least a .230-.240 hitter long-term.
THE FUTURE: The chances of Taylor fixing his contact problems enough to be a playable big leaguer are slim. Most players with his profile (Cody Johnson and Chris Carter are examples) end up flaming out somewhere short of a lengthy MLB career. Taylor's massive power gives him that slim shot of being a future home run champ, if he can make massive adjustments.
Best Tools List
Rated Best Outfield Arm in the Houston Astros in 2020
Rated Best Power Hitter in the Houston Astros in 2020
Scouting Reports
TRACK RECORD: A 27th-round pick of the Twins as a sophomore, Taylor hit 13 home runs for the Tide as a junior, moving into ninth on the school's career home run list (38). He also ranks sixth in career walks for Alabama (110). A hamate injury barely slowed Taylor, as he hit 14 home runs in his first full pro season.
SCOUTING REPORT: Taylor swings and misses baseballs at a frightening rate. In 2019, nearly 40 percent of Taylor's plate appearances ended in strikeouts. However, when he does make contact, he hits the ball in the air and he clears fences. He has the best raw power in the Astros farm system now that Yordan Alvarez has graduated. Taylor also has a plus arm and his average speed works in right field—he's a fringe-average defender. Taylor's plate demeanor doesn't help his swing-and-miss tendencies. Umpires aren't always thrilled with his demonstrative disagreements with called strikes. Very rarely do bottom-of-the-scale hitters with 70 power play in the majors—usually either the hit tool gets better or the player doesn't make it. So Taylor has to figure out how to make enough contact to be at least a .230-.240 hitter long-term.
THE FUTURE: The chances of Taylor fixing his contact problems enough to be a playable big leaguer are slim. Most players with his profile (Cody Johnson and Chris Carter are examples) end up flaming out somewhere short of a lengthy MLB career. Taylor's massive power gives him that slim shot of being a future home run champ, if he can make massive adjustments.
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