Blake Taylor

Blake Taylor
Free agent
Pitcher
Born: (1995-08-17) August 17, 1995 (age 29)
Orange, California, U.S.
Bats: Left
Throws: Left
MLB debut
July 24, 2020, for the Houston Astros
MLB statistics
(through 2022 season)
Win–loss record7–6
Earned run average3.06
Strikeouts67
Stats at Baseball Reference Edit this at Wikidata
Teams

Blake Michael Taylor (born August 17, 1995) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Houston Astros. Taylor was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 2nd round of the 2013 MLB draft. He is a member of the Great Britain national team.

Career

Taylor attended Dana Hills High School in Dana Point, California.[1]

Pittsburgh Pirates

Taylor was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 2nd round, with the 51st overall selection, of the 2013 Major League Baseball draft.[2] Taylor spent his professional debut season of 2013 with the rookie–level GCL Pirates, going 0–2 with a 2.57 ERA over 21 innings.

New York Mets

On June 14, 2014, Taylor was traded to the New York Mets as the PTBNL in a trade that had also sent Zack Thornton to the Mets, in exchange for Ike Davis.[3] Taylor split the 2014 season between the GCL Mets and the Kingsport Mets, going a combined 4–1 with a 3.95 ERA over 40+1⁄3 innings.

In 2015, Taylor split the season between the GCL and the Brooklyn Cyclones, combining to go 0–0 with a 2.25 ERA over 12 innings. In 2016, Taylor made five appearances for Kingsport, going 0–0 with a 4.15 ERA in 8+2⁄3 innings. In 2017, Taylor spent the season with the Columbia Fireflies, going 1–9 with a 4.94 ERA over 85+2⁄3 innings. In 2018, Taylor split the season between the St. Lucie Mets and the Las Vegas 51s, going a combined 3–8 with a 5.40 ERA over 86+2⁄3 innings.

In 2019, Taylor split the season between St. Lucie, the Binghamton Rumble Ponies, and the Syracuse Mets, combining to go 2–3 with a 2.16 ERA over 66+2⁄3 innings. Following the 2019 season, Taylor played for the Scottsdale Scorpions of the Arizona Fall League.[4] On November 4, 2019, Taylor was added to the Mets' 40-man roster.[5]

Houston Astros

On December 5, 2019, Taylor and Kenedy Corona were traded to the Houston Astros in exchange for Jake Marisnick.[6] On July 24, 2020, Taylor pitched a scoreless inning in his MLB debut against the Seattle Mariners. On August 17, he earned his first career save.[7]

In 2020, he was 2–1 with one save and a 2.18 ERA in which he pitched 20+2⁄3 innings over 22 relief appearances.[8] In 2021, he was 4–4 with a 3.16 ERA.[8] In 50 relief appearances, he pitched 42+2⁄3 innings.[8]

On June 4, 2022, the Astros placed Taylor on the 15-day injured list due to left elbow discomfort and transferred him to the 60-day injured list on July 1, 2022.[9] The Astros activated Taylor on September 13, and assigned him to the Triple-A Sugar Land Space Cowboys of the Pacific Coast League.[10] On the season, he pitched in 19 games for Houston and logged a 3.94 ERA with 9 strikeouts in 16.0 innings of work.

On January 13, 2023, Taylor avoided arbitration with the Astros, agreeing to a one-year, $830K contract for the season.[11] After beginning the year in Triple–A, Taylor was designated for assignment by Houston following the waiver claim of Jake Cousins on July 31.[12] On August 4, he was released by the Astros organization.[13]

Texas Rangers

On January 25, 2024, Taylor signed a minor league contract with the Texas Rangers.[14] In 34 appearances for the Triple–A Round Rock Express, he compiled a 4–2 record and 5.80 ERA with 40 strikeouts over 40+1⁄3 innings of work. Taylor was released by the Rangers organization on August 27.[15]

International

In September 2016, Taylor was selected for Great Britain at the 2017 World Baseball Classic Qualification, qualifying via his British father.[16]

References

  1. ^ Adam Rubin (June 14, 2014). "Taylor is player to be named in Ike deal". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 4, 2019.
  2. ^ Steve Breazeale (June 7, 2013). "Blake Taylor Selected No. 51 Overall by Pirates in MLB Draft". Dana Point Times. Retrieved November 4, 2019.
  3. ^ "LHP Blake Taylor acquired from Pittsburgh to complete trade". MLB.com. June 14, 2014. Retrieved November 4, 2019.
  4. ^ Mike Rosenbaum (October 1, 2019). "Another homegrown arm on display in AFL". MLB.com. Retrieved November 4, 2019.
  5. ^ "Mets roster notes". MLB.com. November 4, 2019. Retrieved November 4, 2019.
  6. ^ "Astros acquire two prospects for Mets in exchange for Marisnick". MLB.com. December 5, 2019. Retrieved December 5, 2019.
  7. ^ Alyson Footer (August 18, 2020). "Bielak stifles Rox in Astros' 5th straight win". MLB.com. Retrieved August 19, 2020.
  8. ^ a b c "Blake Taylor stats". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved August 1, 2022.
  9. ^ Van Doren, Kenny (July 29, 2022). "Report: Houston Astros lefty Blake Taylor begins throwing". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved August 1, 2022.
  10. ^ Rome, Chandler (September 13, 2022). "Astros' Blake Taylor activated from injured list, assigned to Sugar Land". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
  11. ^ Dierkes, Tim (January 13, 2023). "2023 MLB Arbitration Tracker". MLB Trade Rumors. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
  12. ^ "Astros' Blake Taylor: Pushed off 40-man roster". cbssports.com. Retrieved July 31, 2023.
  13. ^ "Blake Taylor, Joe Pérez clear waivers, released by Astros". m-houstonchronicle.com. August 4, 2023. Retrieved August 4, 2023.
  14. ^ "Rangers' Blake Taylor: Invited to Rangers camp". cbssports.com. Retrieved January 25, 2024.
  15. ^ https://www.milb.com/transactions/2024-08-27
  16. ^ "Blake Taylor Stats, Fantasy & News". MLB.com. Major League Baseball. Retrieved September 21, 2022.