Taylor is the 218th former Northwoods League player to debut in MLB
Rochester, Minn. – Former St. Cloud Rox pitcher Josh Taylor, made his Major League debut for the Boston Red Sox on Wednesday, May 29, 2019. Taylor is the 218th former Northwoods League player to reach the Major League level.
Taylor, who played collegiately at Georgia College and State University, played for the St. Cloud Rox in 2014. He was signed by the Philadelphia Phillies as an undrafted free agent in August of 2014.
In 10 games with the Rox in 2014 he was 1-2 with a 3.82 ERA and recorded 51 strikeouts in 44.2 innings pitched. He was also selected by MLB scouts to participate in the Big League Dreams Showcase.
Taylor began his minor league career in 2014 with the Phillies Rookie level team in the Gulf Coast League. He pitched in three games and was 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA. He struck out 13 batters in 9.1 innings.
In 2015 Taylor began the year with the Lakewood BlueClaws of the Lo-A South Atlantic League. He started 13 games and was 4-5 with a 4.61 ERA. He also recorded 70 strikeouts in 68.1 innings pitched. In July the Philadelphia Phillies traded Taylor to the Arizona Diamondbacks. Taylor would then finish the season with the Kane County Cougars of the Lo-A Midwest League. He was 4-3 for Kane County with a 3.20 ERA. He added on 53 more strikeouts in 59 innings pitched.
Taylor started the 2016 season with the Visalia Rawhide of the Hi-A California League. After 15 appearances he was promoted to the Mobile BayBears of the AA Eastern League. Between the two clubs he was a combined 5-11 with a 5.36 ERA in 26 games. He struck out a career tying 123 batters in 132.2 innings pitched.
In 2017 Taylor started the year with the Diamondbacks Rookie level team in the Arizona League. After one game he moved up to the Jackson Generals of the AA Southern League to finish the season. For the year he was 4-7 with a 4.96 ERA in 34 games. He struck out 92 batters in 98 innings and walked 46.
Taylor began the 2018 season in Visalia. In May of that season the Red Sox acquired Taylor from the Diamondbacks as the player to be named later in the trade that sent infielder Deven Marrero to Arizona. Taylor would be assigned to the Portland Sea Dogs of the AA Eastern League. After 33 games in Portland he finished the season with one appearance with the Pawtuckett Red Sox of the AAA International League. In 48 games he was 3-7 with a 3.35 ERA and had 60 strikeouts in 53.2 innings pitched.
Prior to being called up by the Red Sox, Taylor had appeared in 19 games in relief in Pawtucket and was 1-1 with a 2.91 ERA. He had 29 strikeouts in 21.2 innings with nine walks
In his Major League debut against the Cleveland Indians, Taylor entered the game in relief of Red Sox starter Ryan Weber. He pitched one inning and allowed one earned run on two hits while striking out one.
###
The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Currently in its’ 26th season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 22 teams, drawing significantly more fans, in a friendly ballpark experience, than any league of its kind. A valuable training ground for coaches, umpires and front office staff, over 200 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist (CHC) and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (BOS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET) and Curtis Granderson (MIA). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. For more information, visit www.northwoodsleague.com or download the Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play.