Dodgers: 3 difficult contract decisions LAD will have to make this offseason

2. Chris Taylor

The Dodgers have made a living in recent years supplementing a fruitful farm system chock full of stars with some of the game’s best role players.

But Joc Pederson and Kiké Hernández motored elsewhere this offseason once they hit their free agency expiration dates. When it came time to choose to keep the band together, Andrew Friedman’s eyes wandered elsewhere.

So, here’s the question: How important do they think Chris Taylor really is?

At times, this season, the versatile Taylor has felt like the team MVP, delivering clutch hits and sterling defense. By the numbers, though … he doesn’t stand out quite as much. CT3 has settled at 2.9 WAR with 20 homers, 73 RBI, and a 112 OPS+ as September ends. Over the last 28 days, he’s hit just .104 after an All-Star first half (justified selection!) where he smashed .277/.382/.452.

The first half made us feel like Taylor was inseparable from the team’s plan, and that they couldn’t possibly move on without his likely-affordable three-year … what, $50 million deal? Now, though … we’re not sure they’ll treat him much differently than they did Hernández last offseason.

With Scherzer to pay and Taylor slumping, his future isn’t as set in stone as it seemingly once was.