How did Chris Taylor survive Dodgers roster crunch after Cavan Biggio trade?

Cavan Biggio was DFA'ed by the Blue Jays on June 7, but when the Dodgers picked him up early on Wednesday morning (in a trade that sent minor league pitcher Braydon Fisher to Toronto), it felt unlikely that they would send him to Triple-A. Biggio, notable for his defensive versatility, could provide immediate relief to both the infield and outfield as a second and third baseman and right fielder, with some experience at first.

But with Biggio going to the 26-man, the question was: would would get the push from the roster? A couple of immediate options came to mind based on performance alone. Chris Taylor was only able to get his batting average just above .100 on June 8 before it fell back to .100 after a hitless Tuesday night against the Rangers. Gavin Lux has a .574 OPS and is far from fans' good graces after causing the defensive jumbling that sent Mookie Betts to second base.

However, it won't be either of them getting the bump. The Dodgers are sending Miguel Vargas back down to make room for Biggio despite the fact that he has hit better than both Taylor and Lux in eight games after being called back up from the minors.

Chris Taylor lives to see another day as a Dodger after Cavan Biggio trade, Miguel Vargas option

Based on performance alone, Taylor is and has been, by far, the least worthy Dodger of being on the major league roster. His batting average has only exceeded .110 once throughout the season so far, back on March 31. The highlight of his season was when he laid down a rare bunt against the Mets in late May to tie a game the Dodgers would go on to win.

But Taylor is also guaranteed $26 million this season and next with no minor league options, while Vargas is still years away from arbitration eligibility and has one more option. If the Dodgers make more additions before the deadline and keep their (questionable) allegiance to Taylor intact, Andy Pages might be the next to get the boot.

While it's disheartening to watch a clearly more deserving player go down because of money rather than performance, Taylor still seems to be very much on the chopping block when the trade deadline comes around. He'll need to get it together very, very quickly if he wants to save himself an outright release from the club, but based on how he's fared this season, the possibility of that happening seems slim.