It was a simple question really, one asked of Dodgers third baseman Justin Turner in parting after most of his teammates – and most of the media – had already left the Dodgers clubhouse following the Dodgers 6-2 win over the Minnesota Twins on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium; a game in which Dodgers utility infielder and now primary left fielder Chris Taylor had once again won almost single-handedly with his two doubles and three RBIs, just as he has done numerous times this season.

“What is your quick synopsis of what Chris Taylor is doing and has done all season long?”

Like I said, a simple question.

But JT’s answer was anything but simple and anything but quick. It was also not the answer that I had expected from the game’s best hitter and one of the most popular Dodger players.

“He’s fun to watch. He came up last year and his ability to put together quality at-bats was on a very high level,” Turner said. “And then he made some swing adjustments in the off-season and he’s just in a good spot to hit every time. It’s very repeatable, it’s very simple and he’s taking good at-bats, staying in the strike zone. When you swing at strikes a lot of good things happen.”

Fair enough. A good quick answer to a simple question. But it’s what Turner said next about Taylor, a guy who is basically in the first full season of his four-year MLB career, that caught me by surprise.

“Yeah, he reminds me a lot of myself, being able to get to the big leagues and being able to put together quality at-bats but not necessarily doing the damage that you want to do,” Turner said. “You make those few adjustments in your swing to be able to repeat it and be on-time all the time, and the next thing you know the ball is jumping off your bat and you’re doing damage all over the field. It’s awesome to watch him go through it. I can feel it. I kind of went through it myself. I’m very very proud of what he’s doing and can’t wait to see what’s left out there for him to accomplish.”

Taylor’s clutch two-out two-run double in the fourth inning of Tuesday night’s eventual 6-2 win over the Twins was the first of two on the night for the hot-hitting 26-year-old Virginia Beach, Virginia native. He would drive in yet another run with his second double in the sixth inning. (Photo credit – Ron Cervenka)

While there may be some who recognized the similarities between Chris Taylor and Justin Turner, I was definitely not among them. Oh sure, you can argue that they are similar because of their clutchness and because they are currently the only two Dodgers hitting about the coveted .300 mark – Taylor at .321 and Turner at an MLB-best .364 – but they have always seemed to be two completely different hitters to me … at least until I took a closer look at their respective numbers, that is. Taylor currently has 12 home runs and 47 RBIs on the season and Turner 11 home runs and 40 RBIs. Taylor has also hit 23 doubles and Turner 19. I now see what JT is talking about with his “he reminds me a lot of myself” comment, this in addition to the fact that both were jettisoned by their previous teams – Turner by the New York Mets and Taylor by the Seattle Mariners – much to the pleasure of the Dodgers and their fans.

“He reminds me a lot of myself,” Dodgers third baseman Justin Turner said of Chris Taylor.
(Photo credit – Jon SooHoo)

“You know, we talked about it the other night, we don’t know what this young man’s ceiling is,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said of Taylor, following Tuesday night’s win. “I think the biggest thing is that he just continues to go out there and try to compete and perform. He keeps getting big hits and he’s also making great defensive plays out there and saving runs, scoring runs, driving in runs. He’s a winning player.”

…just like Justin Turner.