Taylor Walls

Taylor Walls
Walls with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2026
Tampa Bay Rays – No. 6
Shortstop / Second baseman
Born: (1996-07-10) July 10, 1996 (age 30)
Cordele, Georgia, U.S.
Bats: Switch
Throws: Right
MLB debut
May 22, 2021, for the Tampa Bay Rays
MLB statistics
(through 2026 season)
Batting average.200
Home runs24
Runs batted in172
Stats at Baseball Reference Edit this at Wikidata
Teams
Career highlights and awards

Davis Taylor Walls (born July 10, 1996) is an American professional baseball shortstop for the Tampa Bay Rays of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2021.

Amateur career

Walls attended Crisp County High School in Cordele, Georgia, where he played baseball. In 2014, his senior year, he batted over .400 while pitching to a 0.70 earned run average (ERA). Undrafted in the 2014 Major League Baseball draft, Walls enrolled at Florida State University (FSU), where he played college baseball for the Florida State Seminoles.

In 2015, during Walls' freshman year at Florida State, he earned a starting spot, and started all 65 of FSU's games, batting .220 with 22 runs batted in (RBIs) and seven stolen bases. As a sophomore in 2016, Walls slashed .355/.479/.516 with six home runs, 46 RBIs, and 14 stolen bases over 63 starts, earning All-ACC Second Team honors. In 2017, his junior season, Walls started 68 of FSU's 69 games, hitting .273 with eight home runs and 47 RBIs. After the season, Walls was selected by the Tampa Bay Rays in the third round of the 2017 Major League Baseball draft.

Professional career

Minor leagues

Walls signed with the Rays and made his professional debut with the Hudson Valley Renegades of the Low–A New York–Penn League, batting .213 with one home run over 46 games. In 2018, Walls played with the Bowling Green Hot Rods of the Single–A Midwest League (with whom he earned All-Star honors), slashing .228/.343/.328 with four home runs, 41 RBI, and 7 stolen bases over 147 games. Walls started the 2019 season with the Charlotte Stone Crabs of the High–A Florida State League, being named an All-Star. He missed three weeks during the season due to a quadriceps injury. In June, he was promoted to the Montgomery Biscuits of the Double–A Southern League, with whom he finished the season. Over 96 games between the two clubs, Walls batted .270/.343/.452 with ten home runs, 46 RBI, and 28 stolen bases.

Walls with the Hudson Valley Renegades

Walls did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the COVID-19 pandemic. On November 20, 2020, the Rays added Walls to their 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 draft. To begin the 2021 season, he was assigned to the Durham Bulls of the Triple-A East.

Major leagues

On May 22, 2021, Walls was promoted to the major leagues for the first time. He made his debut that day and recorded his first MLB hit, a double off Toronto Blue Jays starter Robbie Ray, during the game. Walls missed a brief period during the season with right wrist tendinitis and was placed on the injured list. He played in 54 games for the Rays and ended the season slashing .211/.314/.296 with one home run, 15 RBI, and ten doubles over 152 at-bats.

In 2022, the Rays named Walls to his first ever Opening Day roster. He made 142 appearances for the Rays in 2022, slashing .172/.268/.285 with eight home runs, 33 RBI, and 10 stolen bases. In 2023, Walls played in 99 games for Tampa Bay, hitting .201/.305/.333 with eight home runs, and new career–highs in RBI (36), and stolen bases (22). He missed over a month during the season due to a left oblique strain. Following the season on October 30, Walls underwent hip surgery to relieve discomfort and repair a labrum tear.

Walls began the 2024 season on the injured list as he recovered from surgery, and was transferred to the 60–day injured list on April 20. He was activated from the injured list on June 7. In 2024, Walls played in 84 games for Tampa Bay, hitting .183/.282/.248 with one home run, 14 RBI, and 16 stolen bases.

Walls made 101 appearances for Tampa Bay in 2025, batting .220/.280/.319 with four home runs, a career-high 38 RBI, and 14 stolen bases. On June 1, in an incident which drew much media attention, Walls was ejected by home plate umpire Nic Lentz, after Lentz believed that Wells was tapping his helmet as a protest, following a dubious strike call, in the ninth inning of a 1-0 loss against the Houston Astros. On September 4, 2025, Walls underwent season-ending sports hernia surgery.

Walls began the 2026 season on the injured list with a right oblique strain. He was activated on April 6 for the Rays' home opener. On August 11 against the Athletics, Walls hit his first home run in over a year. He also homered in his next at bat, this time batting right handed. He ended the season having appeared in 124 games and batted .222/.309/.298 with two home runs, 36 RBI, and 21 stolen bases. After the season, Walls was awarded his first ever Gold Glove Award.

Playing style

Walls is regarded as a weak hitter while providing above-average defense. At the same time, he has excelled at the plate in clutch spots.

Personal life

Walls' wife, Hallie, gave birth to their daughter in April 2021. Their second child, a son, was born in September 2023.

In March 2022, Walls retweeted a statement from Ron DeSantis criticizing the NCAA's decision to allow Lia Thomas to compete in women's swimming competitions. Rays manager Kevin Cash said he spoke to Walls about the tweet but Walls told media that he did not think he "did anything wrong ... It’s just my opinion. And feel free to disagree, there’s no harm done. I don’t have any hard feelings towards anyone else. And that’s kind of it."

References

  1. ↑ Millikan, John (May 26, 2014). "State championship loss ends run for 'family' of Crisp County seniors". Albany Herald. Retrieved November 21, 2025.
  2. ↑ Morse, Tim. "RAY KNIGHT BASEBALL PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Crisp County's Taylor Walls". Albany Herald.
  3. ↑ Henry, Jim. "FSU freshman Walls steps in at SS". Tallahassee Democrat.
  4. ↑ Sonnone, Brendan. "Where does FSU baseball go from here?". orlandosentinel.com.
  5. ↑ Ferrante, Bob. "Taylor Walls, FSU look to scale College World Series heights". The Palm Beach Post. Archived from the original on December 3, 2017.
  6. ↑ "Seminole Trio Garner All-ACC Honors". Florida State Seminoles. May 23, 2016.
  7. ↑ "The resurgence of Taylor Walls". Tallahassee Democrat.
  8. ↑ "Cordele's Walls drafted by Rays". www.walb.com. June 13, 2017.
  9. ↑ III, Wayne E. McGahee III and Wayne McGahee. "FSU shortstop Taylor Walls drafted by the Rays". Tallahassee Democrat.
  10. ↑ Culver, Jordan. "FSU's Taylor Walls signs with the Tampa Bay Rays, Drew Carlton with the Detroit Tigers". Tallahassee Democrat.
  11. ↑ "Six Hot Rods chosen for Midwest League all-star game". www.wbko.com. Archived from the original on June 17, 2018.
  12. ↑ "Rays' Taylor Walls: Hitting well since return". CBSSports.com.
  13. ↑ "Rays' Taylor Walls: Promoted to Double-A". CBSSports.com.
  14. ↑ "Raleigh among young Noles on 60-man MLB rosters - The Osceola".
  15. ↑ "2020 Minor League Baseball season canceled". MLB.com.
  16. ↑ "Rays Designate Hunter Renfroe For Assignment - MLB Trade Rumors". www.mlbtraderumors.com. Archived from the original on November 20, 2020.
  17. ↑ "Rays set rosters for four minor-league teams".
  18. ↑ "Rays Trade Willy Adames to Brewers". May 21, 2021.
  19. ↑ Polishuk, Mark (May 22, 2021). "Rays Promote Taylor Walls, Claim Deivy Grullon From Mets". MLB Trade Rumors. Retrieved January 7, 2026.
  20. ↑ "Rays 3, Blue Jays 1: Taylor-made debut for Walls". May 22, 2021.
  21. ↑ "Notes: Walls to IL as precaution; Castillo's hat". MLB.com. Retrieved November 2, 2026.
  22. ↑ "Rays activate SS Wander Franco from IL". May 28, 2024.
  23. ↑ "Rays set 2022 Opening Day roster". MLB.com. Retrieved November 2, 2026.
  24. ↑ "Taylor Walls 2022 batting Stats Per Game - MLB". espn.com. Retrieved January 19, 2025.
  25. ↑ "Taylor Walls latest Ray placed on the injured list". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved November 2, 2026.
  26. ↑ "Rays' Taylor Walls questionable for opening day after hip surgery". tampabay.com. Retrieved November 1, 2023.
  27. ↑ Polishuk, Mark (April 20, 2024). "Rays Select Erasmo Ramirez". MLB Trade Rumors. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
  28. ↑ Adams, Steve (June 7, 2024). "Rays Designate Harold Ramirez For Assignment". MLB Trade Rumors. Retrieved February 9, 2025.
  29. ↑ "Taylor Walls 2024 batting Stats Per Game - MLB". espn.com. Retrieved June 5, 2025.
  30. ↑ Berry, Adam (June 1, 2025). "Taylor Walls ejected in ninth inning of Rays' loss". MLB.com. Retrieved February 13, 2026.
  31. ↑ Franco, Anthony (September 4, 2025). "Taylor Walls Undergoes Sports Hernia Surgery". MLB Trade Rumors. Retrieved November 8, 2025.
  32. ↑ Berry, Adam. "Walls' oblique injury opens door for top prospect Williams, but 'no guarantees'". MLB.com. Retrieved June 19, 2026.
  33. ↑ "Walls makes speedy return to SS for Rays' home opener; Williams optioned". MLB.com. Retrieved June 19, 2026.
  34. ↑ "Homerless for a year, Walls socks 2 in 30 minutes as Rays roll to 8th straight win". MLB.com. Retrieved August 12, 2026.
  35. ↑ https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/ATH/ATH202608110.shtml
  36. ↑ "For Walls, winning AL Gold Glove at shortstop something he 'dreamed of as a kid'". MLB.com. Retrieved November 2, 2026.
  37. ↑ "What makes Walls such a great shortstop? For one, 'he cheats' (kind of)". MLB.com. Retrieved November 2, 2026.
  38. ↑ https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/taylor-walls-made-one-biggest-233529436.html
  39. ↑ Henry, Jim (May 24, 2021). "Taylor Walls shares promotion to Tampa Bay Rays in emotional call". Tallahassee Democrat. Retrieved February 9, 2025.
  40. ↑ Topkin, Marc (September 16, 2023). "With Taylor Walls on baby duty, Rays summon Tristan Gray". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved February 9, 2025.
  41. ↑ Reyes, Lorenzo (March 24, 2022). "Tampa Bay Rays' Taylor Walls sides with Fla. Gov Ron DeSantis on controversial transgender issue". USA Today. Retrieved July 22, 2024.