Christopher Armand Taylor Jr. (born August 29, 1990), nicknamed "CT3", is an American former professional baseball utility player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Los Angeles Angels.
Taylor played college baseball for the Virginia Cavaliers. Taylor was selected in the fifth round of the 2012 MLB draft and made his MLB debut with the Mariners in 2014. Traded to the Dodgers, Taylor won the National League Championship Series Most Valuable Player Award in 2017, was a member of the World Series champions in 2020 and 2024, and was an All-Star in 2021. During his major league career, he played every position except for catcher, first baseman and pitcher.
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Early life
Amateur career
Taylor attended Great Neck Middle School in Virginia Beach, Virginia, where he was on the wrestling team and won a city wrestling championship. When he attended Frank W. Cox High School in Virginia Beach, he stopped wrestling to focus on baseball. He was named the All-Tidewater region Player of the Year in 2009.
Taylor was recruited to play college baseball by the University of Virginia and the College of William & Mary. He chose to attend Virginia and played for the Cavaliers baseball team, competing in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). In his freshman year, Taylor played sparingly as Tyler Cannon, an All-ACC shortstop, received most of the playing time. In the summer of 2010, Taylor played collegiate summer baseball for the Newport Gulls of the NECBL.
In his sophomore year, Stephen Bruno was named the Cavaliers' starting shortstop at the beginning of the season, and Taylor began the year as the team's right fielder. Taylor became the starting shortstop when Bruno suffered a hamstring injury and retained the job after Bruno recovered. In 2011, Taylor hit a two-out single to drive in the tying and winning runs in the decisive game of the Charlottesville Super Regional against UC Irvine to send the Cavaliers to the College World Series. That summer, he played for the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox in the Cape Cod Baseball League.
Professional career
Seattle Mariners
The Seattle Mariners selected Taylor in the fifth round, with the 161st overall selection of the 2012 Major League Baseball draft. He began his professional career in Minor League Baseball at the Rookie-level, but was soon promoted to Single-A, primarily playing shortstop. In 2013, Taylor played for the High Desert Mavericks of the High-A California League and Jackson Generals of the Double-A Southern League, finishing the season with a combined .314 batting average, 165 hits (eighth-best in Minor League Baseball), eight home runs, 60 runs batted in (RBI), 108 runs scored, and 38 stolen bases while playing shortstop and second base. After the season, the Mariners assigned Taylor to the Peoria Javelinas of the Arizona Fall League, and named him their minor league player of the year. He hit .294 with Peoria, and had a .351 on-base percentage, while playing second base and shortstop.
The Mariners invited Taylor to spring training in 2014. Following spring training, he was assigned to the Tacoma Rainiers of the Triple-A Pacific Coast League (PCL). He appeared in the Triple-A All-Star Game, and was named the PCL's Top Star. After batting .328 with five home runs, 37 RBI, and 63 runs scored in 75 games while playing shortstop and second base, the Mariners promoted Taylor to the major leagues on July 24 to replace the injured Willie Bloomquist. He collected his first major-league hit, a single, that night against the Baltimore Orioles' Wei-Yin Chen. In 47 games, he hit .287.
During spring training in 2015, Taylor fractured his wrist when he was hit by a pitch. After he recovered from his injury, he began the 2015 season with Triple-A Tacoma, where he hit .300 in 86 games. For the 2015 major league season, he batted .170 with no home runs and one RBI in 94 at bats, while playing shortstop, second base, and third base.
After beginning 2016 back in the minors, Taylor was recalled on May 21 to replace the injured Ketel Marte. He had one hit in three at-bats over two games.
Los Angeles Dodgers
On June 19, 2016, the Mariners traded Taylor to the Los Angeles Dodgers for pitcher Zach Lee. Mariners general manager Jerry Dipoto would later regret making the trade, calling it "clearly the worst deal I've ever made."
On July 15, 2016, Taylor hit his first major league career home run, a grand slam, off Silvino Bracho of the Arizona Diamondbacks. He also had a double, a triple, drove in six runs, and fell just short of hitting for the cycle. He was the third Dodgers player in history to have his first career homer be a grand slam (Preston Ward in 1948 and Chico Fernández in 1956) and the third Dodgers second baseman to have at least six RBIs in a game (Billy Herman in 1943 and Jackie Robinson in 1949). He played in 34 games for the Dodgers in 2016, hitting .207 with one home run and seven RBIs, primarily playing shortstop.
Taylor did not make the club out of spring training in 2017 and was assigned to Oklahoma City to begin the season, for whom he batted .233 with one home run and five RBIs in 43 at bats. He was recalled to the Dodgers on April 19. On July 6, against the Arizona Diamondbacks, Taylor hit his first career walk-off hit, driving in Logan Forsythe to win the game 5-4. In the 2017 regular season, he batted .288 with 21 home runs, 72 RBIs, and 142 strikeouts in 514 at bats, playing center field, left field, second base, shortstop, and third base.
On October 14, 2017, he hit his first career postseason home run, off Héctor Rondón of the Chicago Cubs in Game 1 of the National League Championship Series (NLCS). Taylor and Justin Turner were selected as the co-MVPs of the NLCS. On October 24, Taylor hit a home run on the first pitch by Astros' pitcher Dallas Keuchel to begin Game 1 of the World Series. Overall, in the 2017 postseason, Taylor hit .254 with three home runs and seven RBI in 15 games as the Dodgers lost the World Series in seven games.
In his third season with the Dodgers in 2018, Taylor posted a .254/.331/.444 slashline with 17 home runs, 63 RBIs, and nine stolen bases in 604 plate appearances, and led the National League (NL) with 178 strikeouts. He reached career highs in games played (155), runs scored (85), doubles (35), triples (8), and walks (55). With teammate Corey Seager missing most of the season due to injury, Taylor spent the majority of the season at shortstop (81 games, 73 starts). He also played center field (50 games, 32 starts), left field (24 games, 18 starts), second base (12 games, 5 starts), and third base (8 games, 3 starts). On September 10, Taylor was selected to represent MLB in the 2018 MLB Japan All-Star Series. In the postseason, Taylor had only one hit in four at-bats in the NLDS, but his hit was a home run. In the NLCS, he had eight hits in 22 at-bats, and in the World Series, he had two hits in 18 at-bats.
Los Angeles Angels
On May 26, 2025, Taylor signed a major league contract with the Los Angeles Angels. He suffered a broken left hand after being hit by a Tyler Ferguson pitch in a game against the Athletics on June 9. With the Angels, Taylor played in 30 games, batting .179 with two home runs and 10 RBI. Between the Dodgers and the Angels, Taylor played in 58 games in 2025, batting .186 with two home runs and 12 RBI.
Taylor re-signed with the Angels on a minor league contract on February 13, 2026. He was released on March 21, when he failed to win a roster spot during spring training. On March 27, Taylor re-signed with the Angels organization on a new minor league contract. Taylor began the regular season with the Triple-A Salt Lake Bees. On May 22, he announced his retirement from professional baseball. However, the next day, Taylor reversed the original announcement and returned to the Bees; he was subsequently placed on the injured list with a left forearm fracture. On May 24, he once again announced his retirement from professional baseball.
Personal life
Taylor's father, Chris Sr., and grandfather, Armand, attended Virginia Tech, where they competed on the wrestling team.
Taylor married his wife in December 2022 in Waialua, Hawaii. Their first child was born in 2023.
