Among the biggest surprises of the 2017 season for the Los Angeles Dodgers was the unforeseeable arrival of Chris Taylor, who emerged as an All-Star caliber center fielder on both on defense and at the plate.
He began the year with Triple-A Oklahoma City, but quickly cemented himself into the Dodgers’ long-term plans moving forward. After an April promotion, Taylor went on to post career highs in every statistical category.
Furthermore, he proved even more valuable to the Dodgers with his versatility — appearing at five different positions throughout the year. With that kind of success, Taylor is in a much different position this spring as he’s guaranteed a spot on the Opening Day roster.
Despite this, the 27-year-old still wants to improve his swing, via Bill Plunkett of the Southern California News Group:
“Yeah, it’s nice to not have the pressure of having to perform from Day One. You can kind of ease your way into it. It’s definitely comforting to have that security. But at the same time, I think the competitive side of everyone gets you. … I already feel like I’m grinding it out in the cage because my swing doesn’t feel right. That side is always going to be there.”
Taylor entered the 2017 season as a glove-first utility player with one career home run. By the end of his campaign, he produced a slash line of .288/.354/.496 with 34 doubles, five triples and 21 homers over 568 plate appearances.
He later posted an .889 on-base plus slugging percentage across three series in the postseason and accumulated nearly five WAR for his efforts.
In the wake of a breakout campaign, Taylor was ranked among the top-10 center fielders in all of baseball for the 2018 season by MLB Network’s The Shredder.
