Grant Taylor Exits Game With Injury; MRI to Determine Severity

Grant Taylor entered Wednesday night’s game against the Tampa Bay Rays with a chance to record a save. Instead, his outing lasted only seven pitches.

Taylor issued a six-pitch walk to the first batter he faced, then missed badly with his next offering to Tristian Gray. Moments later, the White Sox training staff jogged to the mound to check on him. He walked off the mound with what the team is calling a right groin strain. Of his seven pitches, only two were strikes. 

Taylor is being further evaluated on Thursday with an MRI, but his current status is listed as day-to-day. 

Wikelman Gonzalez, who was part of the four-player return for Garrett Crochet over the offseason, replaced Taylor and proceeded to walk Gray. After Chandler Smith moved the go-ahead runners into scoring position with a sacrifice bunt, Gonzalez recorded the second out of the inning by striking out Yandy Diaz. 

With left-handed hitter Brandon Lowe due up and runners still on second and third, manager Will Venable turned to Tyler Gilbert out of the bullpen. Gilbert locked things down for the White Sox, getting Lowe to strike out on an 82 mph sweeper. 

“A tough spot, you know, second and third with one out, with a really good hitter and a really good contact hitter up, and Wikelman did a great job. When you’re put in that spot where you have to adjust and be flexible, these guys did a great job stepping up," Venable told reporters after the 6-5 victory.

As for Taylor, the groin injury threatens to cut short what had been a promising debut season. The 23-year-old LSU product posted a 31% strikeout rate and averaged 98.7 mph on his fastball, ranking among the 97th percentile of MLB pitchers. Despite owning a 5.58 ERA on the season, Taylor’s expected ERA is just 3.01. This is thanks in part to a 55% ground ball rate, with opponents only owning an expected batting average of .223 against him. 

Across 31.2 innings this season, he has racked up 44 strikeouts and recorded four saves. While he has served as a reliever in the back end of the bullpen for most of the season, the White Sox view him as a potential starter long-term, which is why the team may err on the side of caution with Taylor’s injury this late in the season.