The Dodgers would not be where they are this postseason without Chris Taylor, and the man who traded the outfielder to Los Angeles continues to kick himself every time Taylor comes up big in a clutch moment.
In June of 2016, Seattle Mariners general manager Jerry Dipoto decided to add some pitching depth to his team by trading Taylor to the Dodgers for reliever Zach Lee. Taylor had hit just .240 with no home runs in 86 major league games at the time, and Dipoto obviously failed to see his potential.
“It’s clearly the worst deal I’ve ever made,” Dipoto told Matt Calkins of the Seattle Times this week. “And it resonates every time he hits a home run.”
Taylor hit just .207 for the Dodgers after he was traded last season, but he broke out in a big way in 2017. The 27-year-old batted .288 with 21 homers and 72 RBI. He’s belted three homers, scored 11 runs and driven in five in the postseason this year from his leadoff spot.
“I whiffed. There’s no other way to categorize it,” Dipoto said. “He’s young, he was under club control — that was one I wish I could undo.”
Making matters worse, Lee has not exactly been a consolation prize. In fact, he contributing nothing in Seattle. The 26-year-old right-hander has pitched just 12 2/3 innings in the majors over the past three years, and he never threw an inning for the Mariners.
Taylor, meanwhile, was named the co-MVP of the NLCS along with Dodgers third baseman Justin Turner. He led off Game 1 of the World Series with a solo home run and worked a two-out walk in the bottom of the sixth before Turner belted what ended up being a game-winning two-run homer. It stings more and more for Dipoto each time, but he knows that is the nature of the business.
“It won’t be the last time I trade a player that flourishes somewhere else,” the GM said. “But we’ve also had guys that flourished after we acquired them.”
Predicting the future is part of a baseball executive’s job, but it is far easier said than done. Taylor looked like a career minor leaguer when he was with the Mariners. Sometimes you just get burned.
