Samad Taylor

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked Kansas City Royals #24 prospect in 2023
  BA Grade/Risk: 40/Medium
  
  Track Record: Taylor is now with his third organization after being drafted in the 10th round by Cleveland in 2016, traded a year later to Toronto, and finally received by Kansas City as part of the trade for Whit Merrifield. He didn't play in the regular season after mid-July due to an oblique injury, and didn't make his Royals debut until the Arizona Fall League. Despite playing just 70 games with Triple-A Buffalo, he was named both the best baserunner and the fastest baserunner in the International League in 2022.
  
  Scouting Report: Taylor is aggressive at the plate--a free swinger who likes to hit to his pull side. He has the bat-to-ball skills to get to the power that he does have, and homered nine times in his half-season in Buffalo, but that power has also come with holes in his swing--resulting in a 22% strikeout rate. He needs to change his approach to put more balls in play so that he can take advantage of his plus speed. Taylor has the tools to be a better defender at second base and has also seen time in the outfield but is more fringe-average wherever he plays. He'll be an adequate defender in a utility role, playing multiple infield and outfield positions.
  
  The Future: The Royals added Taylor to the 40-man roster to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft, and he'll likely spend most of 2023 with Triple-A Omaha.
  
  Scouting Grades Hit: 45. Power: 45. Speed: 70. Fielding: 45. Arm: 45.
• 
  Ranked Toronto Blue Jays #11 prospect in 2022
  Track Record: Taylor joined the Blue Jays at the 2017 trade deadline in the deal that sent righthander Joe Smith to Cleveland. Taylor is a springy athlete who had a hard time controlling himself at the plate in 2018 and 2019, but he had a breakthrough in 2021 with Double-A New Hampshire. Despite those steps forward, the Blue Jays left Taylor off their 40-man roster after the season.
  
  Scouting Report: Taylor is a quick-twitch athlete with plus-plus speed. His explosiveness shows up in his excellent bat speed, but for most of his career Taylor struggled with his timing, often getting jammed. He adjusted his setup, keeping his barrel on his back lat before picking it up and swinging from there, a change that helped him maintain his posture as he moved forward to create a simpler, more repeatable swing. His bat path still doesn’t keep his barrel in the zone for long, so he struck out 29% of the time, but he was better able to tap into his average raw power. Taylor is stretched thin at shortstop, and spent most of his time at second base (his best position) but also played third base, center and left field with an average arm.
  
  The Future: If Taylor can cut down on his strikeouts, he could be a useful utility player in the big leagues, though some scouts are skeptical his bat will translate against big league pitching.
  

Minor League Top Prospects

• 
  Ranked New York-Penn League #15 prospect in 2017
  Taylor stood out enough for his understanding of the game, heady play and twitchy athleticism that the Blue Jays acquired him in the July 31 deal that sent Joe Smith to the Indians. Some evaluators thought he could slide to shortstop in a pinch even though he stayed put at second base with Mahoning Valley. Taylor has surprising power for his size. He's given up on switch-hitting, which seems a wise choice as he's shown little trouble hitting righties–he hit .325/.341/.530 against righthanders and all his NYP home runs came against righthanders. He's an average runner and has a chance to be an above-average defender at second base.

• February, 2023 Scouting Report
  BA Grade/Risk: 40/Medium
  
  Track Record: Taylor is now with his third organization after being drafted in the 10th round by Cleveland in 2016, traded a year later to Toronto, and finally received by Kansas City as part of the trade for Whit Merrifield. He didn't play in the regular season after mid-July due to an oblique injury, and didn't make his Royals debut until the Arizona Fall League. Despite playing just 70 games with Triple-A Buffalo, he was named both the best baserunner and the fastest baserunner in the International League in 2022.
  
  Scouting Report: Taylor is aggressive at the plate--a free swinger who likes to hit to his pull side. He has the bat-to-ball skills to get to the power that he does have, and homered nine times in his half-season in Buffalo, but that power has also come with holes in his swing--resulting in a 22% strikeout rate. He needs to change his approach to put more balls in play so that he can take advantage of his plus speed. Taylor has the tools to be a better defender at second base and has also seen time in the outfield but is more fringe-average wherever he plays. He'll be an adequate defender in a utility role, playing multiple infield and outfield positions.
  
  The Future: The Royals added Taylor to the 40-man roster to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft, and he'll likely spend most of 2023 with Triple-A Omaha.
  
  Scouting Grades Hit: 45. Power: 45. Speed: 70. Fielding: 45. Arm: 45.
• December, 2022 Scouting Report
  BA Grade/Risk: 40/Medium
  
  Track Record: Taylor is now with his third organization after being drafted in the 10th round by Cleveland in 2016, traded a year later to Toronto, and finally received by Kansas City as part of the trade for Whit Merrifield. He didn't play in the regular season after mid-July due to an oblique injury, and didn't make his Royals debut until the Arizona Fall League. Despite playing just 70 games with Triple-A Buffalo, he was named both the best baserunner and the fastest baserunner in the International League in 2022.
  
  Scouting Report: Taylor is aggressive at the plate--a free swinger who likes to hit to his pull side. He has the bat-to-ball skills to get to the power that he does have, and homered nine times in his half-season in Buffalo, but that power has also come with holes in his swing--resulting in a 22% strikeout rate. He needs to change his approach to put more balls in play so that he can take advantage of his plus speed. Taylor has the tools to be a better defender at second base and has also seen time in the outfield but is more fringe-average wherever he plays. He'll be an adequate defender in a utility role, playing multiple infield and outfield positions.
  
  The Future: The Royals added Taylor to the 40-man roster to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft, and he'll likely spend most of 2023 with Triple-A Omaha.
  
  Scouting Grades Hit: 45. Power: 45. Speed: 70. Fielding: 45. Arm: 45.
• December, 2021 Scouting Report
  Track Record: Taylor joined the Blue Jays at the 2017 trade deadline in the deal that sent righthander Joe Smith to Cleveland. Taylor is a springy athlete who had a hard time controlling himself at the plate in 2018 and 2019, but he had a breakthrough in 2021 with Double-A New Hampshire. Despite those steps forward, the Blue Jays left Taylor off their 40-man roster after the season.
  
  Scouting Report: Taylor is a quick-twitch athlete with plus-plus speed. His explosiveness shows up in his excellent bat speed, but for most of his career Taylor struggled with his timing, often getting jammed. He adjusted his setup, keeping his barrel on his back lat before picking it up and swinging from there, a change that helped him maintain his posture as he moved forward to create a simpler, more repeatable swing. His bat path still doesn’t keep his barrel in the zone for long, so he struck out 29% of the time, but he was better able to tap into his average raw power. Taylor is stretched thin at shortstop, and spent most of his time at second base (his best position) but also played third base, center and left field with an average arm.
  
  The Future: If Taylor can cut down on his strikeouts, he could be a useful utility player in the big leagues, though some scouts are skeptical his bat will translate against big league pitching.
  
• July, 2021 Scouting Report
  Taylor struggled to hit much at either of his Class A stops, but he's a plus runner who has performed well this year at Double-A New Hampshire and shown occasional power as well, albeit with a high swing-and-miss rate he will need to cut down on as he faces better pitching.