Grandma and more in the stands, Taylor's first start 'a blessing' of a day

SAN DIEGO -- When the Padres promoted Samad Taylor last week, his mind went one place.

“I got the call, and the first thing I thought was: Man, my grandma can come see me play,” Taylor recalled.

Taylor had spent parts of three previous seasons in the big leagues with the Royals and Mariners. But his travels never once brought him to Southern California. A native of Corona, Calif., Taylor had been hoping for the chance to play in front of his family -- and particularly his grandmother, Sheila Marshall, who had never seen him play in the big leagues.

Earlier this week, the righty-hitting Taylor got a heads-up from manager Craig Stammen that he was likely to start Sunday, with left-hander Sean Manaea slated to pitch for the Mets. So the family made the drive down to Petco Park to see Taylor’s first start with the Padres.

He made the most of it.

San Diego dropped its series finale against New York, 7-3, but Taylor was a clear standout. He made three excellent plays in left field -- twice backtracking to the warning track to make a catch, then making a sliding catch in foul territory to rob Brett Baty in the sixth.

At the plate, Taylor singled and walked twice in four plate appearances. For a Padres team that has struggled mightily on offense, Taylor offered a much-needed spark. And he did so in front of about a dozen close friends and family that he’d been waiting to play in front of for a long, long time.

“The last time they’d seen me play, I was probably 11-12 years old,” Taylor said. “So today was a big one. Today was a blessing.”

Taylor recalls his grandmother as the perennial host of family parties and -- events he hasn’t been able to attend in recent years, because of baseball obligations. So he was happy to be at the center of a family reunion of sorts on Sunday.

There might be more to come at Petco Park, especially if Taylor keeps playing like this. Nick Castellanos was released on Friday, the same day Ramón Laureano underwent hip surgery that might end his season. The Padres are looking for answers in left field and need more production at the bottom of their lineup.

“He had a great game,” Stammen said. “… That’s what we were hoping for when we brought some of these guys up. They got that speed element to their game where they can play some D, create havoc throughout the game. Samad did that today. Definitely a good sign for us moving forward for the bottom of our lineup.”

Taylor almost certainly isn’t the long-term solution in left field. But there’s every chance he could establish himself as a useful and versatile bench piece, capable of playing both middle infield spots, as well as all three spots in the outfield.

“Any way I can help the team win, put the team in a situation to come out on top, that’s what I’m going to do,” Taylor said. “I’m going to play hard-nosed baseball. I’m going to grind, as we seen today, grinding at-bats. I’m just going to keep playing hard. When my name’s called on, just gotta come through, make sure I’m ready.”