Former Phils Prospect Taylor Heating Up PCL

Michael Taylor has been gone from the Phillies organization since December, 2009, when he was included in a package of players that was sent to Toronto for ace hurler Roy Halladay. Taylor was quickly flipped to Oakland in a separate trade and has had a tough time reaching and staying in the big leagues ever since.

The 6-foot-5-inch 255-pound outfielder has been mashing opposing pitching in the early going this season, to the tune of a .452 batting average, through 7 games with Triple-A Sacramento. With 6 doubles, a homerun and a league leading 11 RBI, Taylor has helped lead the River Cats to a 6-1 record.

Taylor, a Stanford graduate who spent this past off-season interning at a radio station in San Francisco, was the Phillies 5th round draft choice in 2007.

Over the past two seasons in the Pacific Coast League, Taylor has batted .272 with 22 homers and 142 RBI in 220 games. The righty batting Taylor also sported a .200 average with 1 homerun and 1 RBI in 11 games with the Athletics last year.

Now 26 years old, Taylor is at a crossroads. While he's steadily been on the brink of cracking the Major Leagues, he now sits on the verge of becoming a career minor leaguer. With the numbers he is producing thus far in 2012, that doesn't seem to be a likely option for the two-time minor league All-Star.

In addition, Taylor's teammate outfielder Brandon Moss, who was a key contributor for the Lehigh Valley IronPigs club that went to the International League playoffs last year, is also dominating for the River Cats. In 5 games, Moss has posted a .421 average with a double, a triple, 2 homers and 6 RBI. Moss also appeared in 5 games for the big league Phillies last season, but signed with Oakland as a free agent following the 2011 season.

________________________________________________

You can follow PhoulBallz on Twitter by clicking HERE.

Also connect with PhoulBallz on Facebook by clicking HERE.

Comments

Sunday School: Phillies History Lesson 73

Danny Ozark was the Phillies' manager from 1973-1979. During his tenure as the team's general, Ozark led Philadelphia to three straight division titles. In his playing days, Ozark was a first baseman, who was a career minor leaguer in the Dodgers system. When Ozark took over the team in 1973, the Phillies were fresh off 5 consecutive losing seasons and 3 straight last place finishes. During his first season in charge, the Phillies would again finish in last place, 20 games under .500, but as his core of young talent, like Mike Schmidt and Larry Bowa, developed, the Phillies' win totals rose. Within 2 years, the Phillies were above .500 and in the playoff hunt until late in the season and the most successful era of Phillies history was about to begin. By 1976, the Phillies were headed to the post-season for the first time since 1950. The Phils would enjoy a 10-game lead over their nearest division rival at the midway point of the season. Despite a lul, which saw their lead d...

PhoulBallz Interview: First round pick Bryson Stott

Bryson Stott, image- Jay Floyd Shortstop Bryson Stott , the Phillies' first round draft selection this year, has enjoyed a successful initial pro campaign. En route to being recognized as an All-Star for the Class A short-season Williamsport Crosscutters the 21-year-old UNLV product has tallied a .295 average with six home runs and 25 RBI in 45 minor league contests. Last week I spoke with the lefty hitting Stott to discuss his transition to professional baseball, joining the Phillies organization and plenty more. Read ahead for that interview. -Obviously, your performance and the production on the field is going well, but how do you feel you have adapted to the pro life? It feels good. You hear about the everyday grind, but you don't really believe it till you feel it. I would say that's the difference between college and the pros, is you're not practicing, you're playing games every day. I would say that's the biggest difference. But I...

Velasquez shut down, Eflin on deck?

Eflin with Reading in 2015, image- Jay Floyd Following Vincent Velasquez leaving his start after just two pitches for the Phillies on Wednesday, righty prospect Zach Eflin was pulled from his start for Triple-A Lehigh Valley at Gwinnett. The 22-year-old sports a 5-1 record with a 3.14 ERA and a .210 batting average against in 10 starts for the IronPigs this season. He could take the place of Velasquez if he is required to miss any additional time. Initial word on Velasquez after he threw two fastballs that clocked in the 86-87 MPH range (considerably slower than the 94 MPH he averages) and was swiftly pulled from his outing, is that he has a biceps strain. He'll be further evaluated in the coming days. Prior to the regular season, Eflin got a taste of competing against big leaguers when he was charged with 12 runs (nine earned) on 11 hits while striking out two and walking one with a wild pitch in three innings of work in an intrasquad exhibition that pitted the Phils...

PhoulBallz.com

Search This Blog