{"id":661518,"date":"2026-05-24T02:20:08","date_gmt":"2026-05-24T02:20:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/661518\/"},"modified":"2026-05-24T02:20:08","modified_gmt":"2026-05-24T02:20:08","slug":"chris-taylor-changes-mind-on-retirement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/661518\/","title":{"rendered":"Chris Taylor Changes Mind On Retirement"},"content":{"rendered":"

TODAY: Taylor has reversed his decision to retire, according to Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com<\/a>. Instead, he\u2019s been placed on the minor league injured list with a left forearm fracture, which he sustained on Wednesday at Triple-A Salt Lake.<\/p>\n

May 22nd: Two-time World Series winner\u00a0Chris Taylor<\/a> is retiring, according to the MiLB.com transaction log<\/a>. He had been in Triple-A with the Angels.<\/p>\n

Taylor played parts of 12 seasons in the big leagues. The University of Virginia product was a fifth-round pick by Seattle in 2012. He played a bench role with the Mariners for a couple seasons before being traded to the Dodgers for right-hander Zach Lee<\/a> in June 2016. That seemingly minor trade would haunt the Mariners, as then-GM Jerry Dipoto would call it<\/a> \u201cthe worst deal I ever made\u201d a year later.<\/p>\n

Although Taylor wasn\u2019t much of a factor in his first half-season with the Dodgers, that changed following his recall from Triple-A in April \u201917. Taylor hit .288\/.354\/.496 with 21 home runs and 34 doubles over 140 games. He carried that form into the postseason, posting a near-.900 OPS in his first October action. That included a pair of homers in a five-game NLCS victory over the Cubs, in which Taylor was named the co-series MVP with Justin Turner<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

That was the start of a five-year stretch in which Taylor was a key piece of very successful Dodgers teams. He\u2019d hit .258\/.340\/.450 with 57 homers from 2018-21, earning an All-Star selection in the final of those years. He\u2019d win his first World Series ring when L.A. defeated the Rays in 2020. That was ironically one of the only postseasons in which Taylor didn\u2019t have good numbers, but he\u2019d go on an absolute tear the following October.<\/p>\n

Taylor had a signature moment when he hit a walk-off home run<\/a> against Alex Reyes<\/a> to knock out the Cardinals in the \u201921 Wild Card Game. That was the first of four he\u2019d hit in that postseason despite Dodgers getting bounced by the Braves in the NLCS. Taylor carried that momentum into his first trip to free agency, eventually re-signing on a four-year contract that guaranteed him $60MM.<\/p>\n

Although it was an obvious move for the Dodgers at the time, that didn\u2019t work out the way Taylor or the team would\u2019ve hoped. He missed time in each of the first three seasons while his power production dropped. His game always came with a lot of strikeouts, so the declining slugging numbers made him a below-average hitter. He remained a valued clubhouse presence, though, and he\u2019d win another championship when the Dodgers knocked off the Yankees in a five-game World Series in 2024.<\/p>\n

Taylor spent the first six weeks of the 2025 season holding a spot on Dave Roberts\u2019 bench. He\u2019d get released in May and joined the Angels on a big league deal. He broke his hand early in his Halos\u2019 tenure and spent most of the year on the injured list. He hit .186 in 58 games between the two clubs, but he\u2019d collect a third ring for his early-season work once the Dodgers repeated as champions. Taylor also achieved the 10-year service milestone last August, albeit while on the injured list.<\/p>\n

Taylor re-signed with the Angels but was unable to snag a roster spot out of camp. After 32 games with Triple-A Salt Lake, he evidently decided he was prepared to call it a career. It\u2019s unclear if that\u2019s due to some kind of injury. Taylor played on Wednesday and departed in the sixth inning after being hit by a pitch in what\u2019ll seemingly be his final professional plate appearance.<\/p>\n

Over more than a decade in the Majors, Taylor tallied 860 hits and 110 home runs. He had a league average .248\/.327\/.419 batting line overall, though he was an above-average hitter for five straight seasons at his peak. His .247\/.351\/.441 postseason slash was superior to his regular season mark despite the higher quality of competition.<\/p>\n

Taylor was a part of two World Series winners and four NL pennants in L.A., three of them as an everyday player. He also suited up at six positions \u2014 all three outfield spots and the infield positions to the left of first base \u2014 as a versatile defender. Baseball Reference and FanGraphs credited him with roughly 16-17 Wins Above Replacement, and he racked up nearly $78MM in earnings. Congratulations to Taylor on an excellent run and all the best in retirement.<\/p>\n

Image courtesy of Vincent Carchietta, Imagn Images.<\/p>\n

\t\t