Padres must make room for Samad Taylor without derailing his breakout season

When Samad Taylor finishes his rehab assignment, the Padres shouldn’t hesitate to stick him right back in left field. Taylor took that job while the roster was spiraling. The Padres signed him to a minor-league deal in January, promoted him on June 3 and watched a career depth piece play his way into a much bigger role. In 26 games, Taylor slashed .330/.410/.398. He added six stolen bases and gave the Padres a spark they couldn’t manufacture from their stars at the time.

The slug was modest, but that shouldn’t surprise anyone. Everything else moved. Taylor worked his way on base, stayed pesky in the box and brought strong defense to the corner outfield spot. San Diego suddenly had another player capable of creating chaos.

Then Taylor strained his right oblique on July 8. The injury only paused the story. Through his first seven rehab games with Triple-A El Paso, he slashed .304/.407/.478.

Samad Taylor earned a real Padres role before his injury

Craig Stammen should resist the urge to move him into a super-utility role and start moving him around the diamond like a spare part. His versatility is plays. But it can quickly become an easy excuse to deny him the reps he has earned.

Taylor is also out of minor-league options, removing the option of leaving him in El Paso indefinitely. September’s roster expansion can handle some of the work. They can activate him without removing another player from the major league roster. Still, playing time will be the bigger question.

One of the temporary outfield pieces can lose at-bats. But that’s easier said than done. Luis Rengifo is slashing .296/.376/.416 since joining the Padres, and Dustin Harris hasn’t looked bad since making his Padres debut, either. That opens the door for Taylor to move around the diamond. If the Padres take that route, his role should still include plenty of starts. The front office can sort through the names without making Taylor pay for getting hurt.

There will be nights when his speed will be needed off the bench. But those should be occasional assignments. Taylor should receive four or five starts a week and a genuine chance to resume the season he was having. 

We have seen the Padres turn simple lineup questions into monthlong experiments before. This one is simple. Taylor reached base, stole bags and forced his way into the picture.

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