Shenanigans are inevitable in the Giants’ bullpen this year. In fact, they’ve already begun.
Seventeen minutes into his introductory Zoom press conference, Taylor Rogers fielded a question from Brennan Huff. The alias, easily recognized by any well-versed early 2000s comedy fan, belonged to Taylor’s identical twin, Tyler.
“Is it safe to say that the Giants have the best-looking bullpen in the National League West,” Tyler asked his brother, recycling his joke from last April.
The surprise appearance from Tyler came just minutes after Taylor insisted he and his twin aren’t “tricksters.”
“We’re business first and we’re trying to win ball games,” Tyler, as Brennan Huff, said. “But we’re definitely going to have some fun along the way.”
“Stay on your toes,” Taylor added.
For the first time since high school, the Rogers brothers will pitch together. Taylor and Tyler are the first set of MLB teammate twins since the Canseco brothers played for Oakland in 1990. The reunion happened organically this winter, but years apart allowed them to feel comfortable coming back together again.
With his brother, whom he values as a pitching consultant, Taylor should help support a Giants bullpen that ranked 20th in ERA last season. There are bound to be funny moments in the clubhouse, but adding Taylor, an All-Star in 2021 — on a three-year, $33 million deal — is no joke.
“We weren’t trying to make this happen in the beginning,” Taylor said. “I was just going in as clean slate, free agency, what would fit for me. This happened because the Giants needed a left-handed pitcher. It’s just gravy on top that Ty’s here, too. I think that’s what’s cool about it, is it happened naturally. We weren’t forcing it.”
Taylor and Tyler are different people, and it’s important to remember that for any set of twins. Taylor thinks he’s more serious, Tyler more relaxed. But they both share a wry, often understated sense of humor.
When the Brewers traded Taylor to the Padres last year, Tyler quipped that the National League West would now be the best-looking division in baseball. During the 2021 NLDS, Taylor teased Tyler outside the Giants’ bullpen. He did so while sipping a Bud Light, Tyler’s preferred beverage for washing down saves.
When Taylor’s Padres came to town on April 11, the twins played catch in the Oracle Park outfield pregame. It was a surreal moment for the two Littleton, CO natives who grew up playing 1-on-1 in the driveway.
“I would win half the time and lose half the time,” Taylor said.
That day, they posed for a photo together behind home plate and then exchanged the pregame lineup cards. They became the first pair of twins to pitch against each other in an MLB game.
And although the identical twins have many identifiable similarities, they’ve had much different paths to get to this reunion.
When they graduated from high school in 2009, the hard-throwing Taylor headed to the University of Kentucky as a heralded prospect. Tyler went to Garden City Community College to become a firefighter.
By the time the Twins drafted Taylor in the 11th round, Tyler had transferred to Austin Peay, where he dropped his arm slot as low as anyone ever has. Taylor, a lefty, throws a 94 mph fastball. Tyler, the righty submariner, rarely cracks 85 mph.
Taylor, an All-Star in 2021, is in the 90th percentile in strikeout rate. Tyler, who led MLB in appearances in 2020 and 2021, registers comfortably in the 7th percentile.
“Our DNA is 99.9% the same, but we can throw so (differently),” Taylor said.
The Giants, the only club Tyler has known, will be Taylor’s fourth organization in seven years.
They differ too in their bank accounts, where Tyler is still in arbitration and Taylor will make $33 million over the next three years. Tyler joked that he’s used Taylor’s name to buy beers on the golf course at the country club.
It was important for the brothers to spend time apart in college, and then in the Majors, Taylor said. That way, they weren’t always known as “the twins.” To their friends, teammates and coaches, they could be Just Taylor and Just Tyler. For 10 years, they were able to be their own selves.
Now their worlds are colliding again. Did we just become best friends?
Tyler and Taylor will make up two-fifths of a bullpen core. Taylor as a left-handed, late-inning counterpart to Camilo Doval. Tyler as a versatile option who can be deployed after or before arms like John Brebbia, Scott Alexander or Jakob Junis.
With the departures of Jarlin García and José Álvarez, Taylor fills a need for a reliable southpaw. Even though he struggled after getting traded to San Diego last year, Taylor recorded a career-high 31 saves in 2022.
Both Taylor and Tyler could benefit from sharing a clubhouse. They know each other better than anyone else and have shared tips when they notice something in another’s pitching. They trust each other’s opinion.
“I was talking with Tyler at the beginning of this offseason, kind of going over what I need to overhaul, what I need to change, is there anything (he’s) seen,” Taylor said. “That’s the coolest part about this, too: I’ve got my pitching coach playing catch with me every day now. That’s pretty darn cool.”