Samad

Taylor

Taylor is back in Tacoma with Ty France back on the active roster from paternity leave. The 25-year-old infielder/outfielder likely will see time again with Seattle in a reserve role.

Taylor will join the Mariners while Ty France is away from the team on paternity leave. In his four games at the Triple-A level this season, Taylor has gone 2-for-17 with eight strikeouts. Fantasy managers will want to look else where if they need to replace Ty France for the a game or two.

The latest batch of cuts from Mariners camp trims their spring training roster down to just 34 players with Opening Day right around the corner. There isn’t a spot for Hancock in Seattle’s crowded starting rotation mix, but he could get a look at some point if injuries or ineffectiveness strike. Taylor possesses an intriguing blend of speed and defensive versatility, but hasn’t been able to carve out a role at the highest level yet.

Taylor started in left field on Sunday, batting ninth against the Diamondbacks. He drew a walk to lead off the fifth inning and stole second before cross home plate on a throwing error. Taylor later doubled in the seventh and scored against on a base hit. The 25-year-old outfielder is 8-for-28 (.286) with a pair of homers and three steals this spring.

The Royals never gave Taylor a real chance, and it’s unclear whether the Mariners will, either. Still, he might do a fair enough Dylan Moore impression if the opportunity arises. The 25-year-old is an excellent basestealer capable of playing second base and in the outfield, and he hit .301/.418/.466 in 414 plate appearances in Triple-A last season. He’s likely to report to Triple-A initially this year.

The speedy 25-year-old entered the game as a pinch-runner for Jorge Polanco in the fourth inning and promptly swiped second base before being stranded at third. He then smacked a game-tying solo shot off of Chase Solesky in the seventh inning that tied things up at 2-2. Taylor also put his defensive versatility on display in this one as he logged time at both second base and left field despite not entering the game until the fourth inning. He’d make for an intriguing inclusion on the M’s Opening Day roster, but the fact that he has minor league options remaining may end up working against him.

This doesn’t really seem like a better situation for Taylor, especially in light of the Jorge Polanco addition, but the Royals obviously weren’t interested in giving him a real chance. The 25-year-old Taylor hit .301/.418/.466 with 43 steals in Triple-A last year and .200/.279/.267 with eight steals in 69 major league plate appearances. He could take on Dylan Moore’s role if the Mariners opt to trade the veteran utilityman, but he wouldn’t seem to have a spot as is. Since he has options remaining, he’s likely destined for Triple-A.

Taylor possesses enough stolen base potential to make an impact for fantasy managers, but he’s played sparingly this season for the Royals, getting into just 31 contests so far. He does have eight steals during that timeframe, but there isn’t a path to regular at-bats at the moment in Kansas City.

With lefty Chris Sale on the bump for Boston, Melendez will retreat to the bench Sunday afternoon. The 24-year-old’s year started off slowly, but he is hitting .292/.341/.516 with 11 homers and three stolen bases in the second half of the season. Samad Taylor will patrol left field and bat eighth in his absence.

Olivares had started the last two games but will move to the bench with Matt Beaty sliding into the DH spot and Samad Taylor playing left field. Kyle Isbel will also head to the bench with Drew Waters in center field. The Royals also added outfielder Nelson Velazquez at the trade deadline and while he is currently in Triple-A, the crowded situation could lead to inconsistent playing time for everybody until the Royals decide to move on from some of the older veterans. If they do decide that. For his part, Olivares is hitting .248/.302/.407 on the season with six home runs and eight steals in 77 games and may never live up to the optimism of fantasy managers.