Taylor Duncan

Taylor McDowell Duncan

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 170 lb.
• School American River College
• High School Grant Union High School (Sacramento)
• Debut September 15, 1977
• Final Game September 30, 1978
• Born May 12, 1953 in Memphis, TN USA
• Died January 3, 2004 in Asheville, NC USA

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Biographical Information

Taylor Duncan, who was a first-round pick of the Atlanta Braves in the 1971 amateur draft, made his debut with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1977 going 4-for-12 with a home run. With the Oakland Athletics in 1978, he recorded 319 at-bats.

He traveled quite a bit between being drafted and making his major league debut, first being traded to the Baltimore Orioles, along with Earl Williams, in return for Pat Dobson, Roric Harrison, Davey Johnson and Johnny Oates on November 30, 1972. He played five seasons in the Orioles' system, two with the Double A Asheville Orioles and three in Triple A with the Rochester Red Wings, but never reached the major leagues. He was placed on waivers at the end of the 1977 season, despite being hot off an outstanding season with Rochester, where he hit .301 with 27 homers and 76 RBI. The Cardinals claimed him on September 7th and immediately brought him to the majors, where he went 4 for 12 with a home run. After the season, the A's selected him in the 1977 Rule V Draft.

Duncan appeared in 84 games at third base for the 1978 Oakland Athletics, while Wayne Gross, one year older, appeared in 106 games at the position. Gross hit only .200 while Duncan hit .257. Duncan had a better fielding percentage, but Gross continued as third baseman through 1985 while Duncan played with Oakland only the one season. He hit .257 in 319 at-bats, with 2 homers and 37 RBI.

He suffered a broken ankle in his first major league season. In 1979, he played for five different minor league teams in four separate organizations, but still logged 84 games with 4 homers and 32 RBI. He started the 1980 season in Double A with the Knoxville Blue Jays, but soon moved to the Seibu Lions of the Japanese Pacific League. He hit .235/.271/.452 with 14 homers in 64 games. He played for a number of teams in the Mexican League from 1981 to 1983, after which he retired. In 1989, Duncan played for the Gold Coast Suns and the St. Petersburg Pelicans of the Senior Professional Baseball Association. Duncan batted .077 in 5 games - 2 games with Gold Coast and 3 with St. Petersburg.

He died of a stroke in 2004, aged only 50.