Taylor Olmstead

Hall of Fame

It’s fair to say that Taylor Olmstead is “Mr. Blue Sox.” Olmstead joined the organization when they were known as the Utica Brewers in 2015 and made an immediate impact on a team that had finished with a league-worst 9-36 record the year prior. He slugged a franchise-record seven home runs that summer while hitting .265 and driving in 26 runs, which earned him All-PGCBL second team honors. As the Blue Sox experienced their finest season ever in 2016, so did Olmstead. He compiled a team-high 30 RBIs while hitting an impressive .306 and tying for the league-lead in triples with seven en route to being named a PGCBL all-star and earning first team All-PGCBL honors, all of which helped Utica capture the 2016 West Division title. 2017 would prove to be Olmstead’s farewell tour in Utica and it was quite an action-packed one as he played in his second straight PGCBL All-Star Game, where he homered in his first at-bat. His finest moment as a Blue Sock, though, came on July 23 of that 2017 season. His team trailed the rival Mohawk Valley DiamondDawgs 9-0 entering the bottom of the 6th at Murnane Field. After Cole Pursell had finally put Utica on the board with a two-run single in that inning, Olmstead hit a three-run homer to cut the deficit down to four. But “T.O.” was far from finished. In the very next inning with the score still 9-5, he tied the game on one swing with a grand slam down the left field line. Olmstead’s heroics led to Utica ultimately winning the ballgame 10-9 and completing the largest comeback in team history at the time. Olmstead finished the season with a .274 average, four home runs, and 25 RBIs. He remains the franchise’s all-time leader in most major categories. In his three seasons in Utica, Olmstead compiled 132 hits, 83 runs scored, 81 RBIs, 47 steals, 13 triples, and 11 home runs in 131 games played. His number 20 was retired by the organization before his final game ever as a Blue Sock on July 30, 2017 at Murnane Field.

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