On Tuesday afternoon, the Rockies placed Raimel Tapia on the 10-day injured list with a toe strain. Taylor Motter’s contract from Triple-A Albuquerque has been selected by the big league club.
The Rockies announced today that they have selected the contract of INF/OF Taylor Motter from Triple-A Albuquerque and have placed OF Raimel Tapia on the 10-day IL with a right big toe strain. Motter will wear #18.
— Rockies Club Information (@RockiesClubInfo) August 10, 2021
Tapia started for the Rockies on Sunday in the leadoff spot, but was removed from the game after just one at-bat. He was replaced by Connor Joe in the bottom of the second inning.
Tapia’s toe discomfort started during a series against San Diego at the end of July. After playing through it for all three games of last week’s set with the Cubs, Tapia had a combined two at-bats on Saturday and Sunday as the pain intensified. He was still able to produce with the sprain, however, hitting .323 from July 29 onward.
Taylor Motter has played for three different MLB teams in just over a year of service time. He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Rays in 2011 and made his debut in 2016 where he struggled to adjust in 34 games to the tune of a .188 average. He was traded to the Seattle Mariners and bounced around in their system and with the minor league systems of the Minnesota Twins and Oakland Athletics. Motter holds a big league career slash of .191/.263/.312, and a bWAR of -0.8.
Motter’s season with Albuquerque has been somewhat of a delightful enigma. He had not hit over .250 in affiliated ball since a 25-game stint with Seattle’s Triple-A Tacoma Rainiers in 2017, where he hit .350 in 100 at-bats. He played with the Kiwoom Heroes of the KBO in 2020 but was released after slashing an unfortunate .114/.135/.200 with just one home run.
After returning stateside, he played independent ball with the AABC’s New Jersey Wise Guys (a 2020 adaptation of the independent Frontier League), where he slashed .444/.583/1.056 in 18 at-bats with three home runs and two doubles.
The Rockies signed Motter to a minor league contract in March of 2021, where he was assigned to the Isotopes and promptly started tearing the cover off the ball. One of Albuquerque’s most accomplished hitters of the season thus far, Motter has a line of .335/.460/.759 with a team high 24 home runs and 57 RBIs.