Texas Rangers say paralyzed UGA OF ‘deserved to be drafted’
Georgia players gather around injured center fielder Jonathan Taylor at the SEC Tournament. (AP photo)
Georgia outfielder Johnathan Taylor, who was paralyzed after colliding with a teammate in March, was drafted by the Texas Rangers on Wednesday in the 33rd round of the MLB Draft.
“The kid, he’s obviously going through a tough time, and this was a way to let him know that people are thinking about him,” Ryan Coe, the Texas Rangers scout for Georgia, told the AJC.
“And you know what? The kid deserved to be drafted. He was a good player for all those years. He’s somebody we had interest in had he been healthy.
“He deserved the recognition to be drafted … that’s all I can say.”
The selection of Taylor was one of the feel-good stories of the three-day draft. In the first round, the Rangers used the No. 37 overall pick to take Georgia’s Zach Cone, who was involved in the devastating outfield collision with Taylor in a March 6 game against Florida State.
Cone and Taylor remain best of friends and celebrated Wednesday’s announcement over the phone. Taylor was undergoing rehabilitation at Shepherd Spinal Center in Atlanta that has continued since surgery for a broken neck. He is paralyzed from the waist down.
“JT was so pumped up and couldn’t have been happier,” Cone told the AJC. “He was very surprised and not expecting it to happen. I was very happy for JT because I knew being drafted was something he always wanted.
“It’s an honor for me to get drafted by the same team. It says a lot about the Rangers. It means a lot to JT, me, and both of our families.”
Georgia baseball coach David Perno said, “This was truly a classy move and a great gesture on the part of the Texas Rangers organization.”
Taylor played at North Cobb High School and the past three seasons at Georgia. He had been scouted for years by Coe, who joined the Rangers last year after 13 seasons as an assistant at Kennesaw State. Coe brought up the idea of drafting Taylor to both Cone and the Rangers director of scouting, Kip Fagg. Both approved.
“I’ve always liked the way Johnathan played the game; he was hard-nosed and gritty player,” Fagg told the AJC. “At some point, if the tragedy wouldn’t have happened, he would’ve gotten drafted.”
“This was the right thing to do. It was about respecting how the kid went about his business, and it was a way to honor him and the way he played the game.”
Pro scouts in Georgia donated more than $1,500 to Taylor and his family with proceeds from last week’s Southeast Senior All-Star Game, which featured some of the top high school prospects from Georgia, South Carolina, Alabama and Tennessee.
After the injury, Taylor joined his teammates in the dugout for a pair of games before the end of the season. Georgia’s players wore “JT-2” (Taylor’s jersey number was No. 2) on the back of their batting helmets and “JT-2” was painted on the stadium’s outfield wall.
Fans can donate to the Johnathan Taylor Fund through the UGA website, georgiadogs.com, or at any First American Bank and Trust location. To send an online message to Taylor, go to www.caringbridge.org/visit/Johnathantaylor
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69 comments Add your comment
Daniel's Dawgs
June 8th, 2011
3:40 pm
Classy move Rangers…… Go Dawgs
BG
June 8th, 2011
3:41 pm
Great move by the Rangers. GO DAWGS!
Matthews Dawg
June 8th, 2011
3:41 pm
First and a great organization
DawginLex
June 8th, 2011
3:42 pm
Texas just became my 2nd favorite team.
Dadgum classy move!
Matthews Dawg
June 8th, 2011
3:42 pm
2nd, but still a classy thing for the Rangers to do! I now have a 2nd favorite team in the MLB, behind the Braves!! Go Dawgs!!
Patrick
June 8th, 2011
3:44 pm
This is awesome!
southern hope
June 8th, 2011
3:47 pm
Wow! Even if it was done to help with Cone, this is so great. And a real inspiration to all of the guys sitting at the Sheppard Center right now (many of whom were superb athletes before their accidents)
P-Man
June 8th, 2011
3:47 pm
I’m a new Rangers fan!
Sloan
June 8th, 2011
3:48 pm
My new favorite baseball team, the Texas Rangers!
51WTGW50
June 8th, 2011
3:48 pm
Was this a Sympathy pick?
Can the kid ever play again?
I hope he can return but I don’t know what the doctors have said.
Please somebody fill us in if he will ever be Good To Go?
I have broken my Back and I do physical work but i don’t think I will ever be as good as I once was.
Glad the RANGERS did this. It will give the kid some money to invest and live on or pay for future health issues.
This was a classy move.
Bo Diddley
June 8th, 2011
3:49 pm
What a display of class and grace!
Adam
June 8th, 2011
3:53 pm
very classy move by the rangers organization, very nice
to hear about stories like this,instead of what we usually
hear about in the media.
Lowcountry Bulldawg
June 8th, 2011
3:58 pm
The Rangers have become one of the premiere Baseball Organizations. Great job Nolan Ryan in overcoming what Tom Hicks left you with and what a incredible move in drafting this young man. We are and will continue to be Big Ranger fans, forgiving the Smoak trade!
still a brave fan
June 8th, 2011
4:01 pm
Go Braves!
BarryLee
June 8th, 2011
4:04 pm
Sometimes something happens that just causes you to pause and say wow…
ViningsMike
June 8th, 2011
4:07 pm
Why didn’t the Braves think of that? Go JT!
Dawgs1
June 8th, 2011
4:14 pm
Classy Rangers! Just won a lot of new fans including me.
Walter Lampp
June 8th, 2011
4:14 pm
I’m a Ranger now!
Vicki
June 8th, 2011
4:16 pm
WOW!!! Good to know there are still people out there who believe in making dreams come true! Way to go Rangers! I am now a fan!
Jim S.
June 8th, 2011
4:16 pm
Go J.T.! Good stuff!
51WTGW50
June 8th, 2011
4:17 pm
Thank God Talyor’s parents didn’t go the Nick Buoniconti route and try to sue the school for their child’s injury.
Ryan was a BAD DUDE on the Mound and a Great Dude off the mound. Now we know how much Class “Mr. I’ll Knock You Out If You Charge the Mound” really has.
51WTGW50
June 8th, 2011
4:17 pm
sorry TAYOR’S
51WTGW50
June 8th, 2011
4:19 pm
HAHAH had to spell it Like it is in the HEADLINE.
It is so good to hear a FEEL GOOD story right now in sports.
Diane
June 8th, 2011
4:26 pm
I love Texas because this is what Texans are all about: character and class. Good move Rangers! I hope this young man makes a full recovery; bless him and the Texas Rangers!
YankeesFan
June 8th, 2011
4:29 pm
Congratulations to Johnathan! He is a classy, hard-working, and inspiring young man. Wishing him the best of luck as he recovers and move forward. Kudos to the Rangers for their support of Johnathan!
lucky21
June 8th, 2011
4:30 pm
Tech fan here congrats to JT and you stay classy rangers
Dawg Whisperer
June 8th, 2011
4:31 pm
Whaddya know? Business isn’t always as usual. Great forethought on the part of the Rangers. Even if JT can not produce a single hit for the Rangers, the good publicity generated from this can not be ascribed a value. Good things begat those who have a good heart.
OldFan
June 8th, 2011
4:32 pm
Well done, Rangers! Means the world to J.T. and to those of us who love the virtues of sports.
George Stein
June 8th, 2011
4:33 pm
This Tech fan applauds the Rangers and, more importantly, wishes for Taylor’s full recovery.
NewnanDawg
June 8th, 2011
4:34 pm
Wow! Awesome! And, that’s about all I have to say about that.
Dex
June 8th, 2011
4:34 pm
Wow! With all the negatives in the newspapers this is a touching story. Big ups to the Texas Rangers.
Joe B.
June 8th, 2011
4:35 pm
They probably just did it so they can low ball their offer to Cone. Does anyone actually think that there are any good people left in sports? If so, you are a sucker.
timthebrave
June 8th, 2011
4:39 pm
Congrats JT. Class move by the Rangers
Jeremy Waller
June 8th, 2011
4:39 pm
Awesome!! The Rangers have really done a good thing today and we are really proud of JT!!!
Cobb Woman of Color
June 8th, 2011
4:40 pm
Heartfelt and wonderful!
Martin
June 8th, 2011
4:43 pm
Wow, that was a great move
Dawg1
June 8th, 2011
4:49 pm
After the Braves, the Rangers will for now on be my favorite MLB Team. What a class thing to do…
NewnanDawg
June 8th, 2011
4:51 pm
Schlabach has a nice article up at espn.com now about it with comment from the Rangers organization.
The Baroness
June 8th, 2011
4:53 pm
What a great story!! This has made my day!!
All Smilez
June 8th, 2011
4:55 pm
Great story – happy to see all the positive feedback. Congrats to Taylor and Cone.
GT77
June 8th, 2011
4:58 pm
Super gesture by the Rangers. JT and I may have been on diffferent sides because of our schools, but I pray often for him.
51WTGW50
June 8th, 2011
4:58 pm
Michael C
Why did you ban DogLoverUGAmut….?
The New Orleans thing was a bit harsh but not racists or any cuss words.
NewnanDawg thanks for the note on the espn story. It was a good article for sure.
AGTFAN53
June 8th, 2011
4:58 pm
Way to go Texas Rangers and good luck to JT.
chuck allison
June 8th, 2011
5:01 pm
I want to understand. How is it classy to draft an unfortunate young man to play professional baseball when he is paralyzed? I guess I am glad that the young man takes it as a compliment.
Sean
June 8th, 2011
5:07 pm
This is political correctness gone crazy but if they can afford it, so be it; anything goes I guess.
Brian
June 8th, 2011
5:10 pm
This WAS a nice move by the Rangers, however, if you look back at the MLB draft over half of the players drafted this low never sign with the team. This didn’t cost the Rangers any money and it doesn’t give JT any money, he would have to sign a contract and get a signing bonus and if he doesn’t show up to play he doesn’t get paid and by contract gives back the signing bonus. No, this doesn’t help JT at all monetarily but it is a nice story he can frame and put on his wall that the family can say “JT was good enough to be drafted”. Instead of saying “I could have been, except I was hurt” He can always say ” I was drafted to play professional baseball” . Every little boy who plays baseball wants that someday and he earned it while he was healthy.
51WTGW50
June 8th, 2011
5:13 pm
I don’t KNOW
What is the Youngest Age a player can sign a MLB contract? Do players have to be at least a Senior in High School or can a 13 yr old player sign?
Yellow Jacket
June 8th, 2011
5:14 pm
Very cool. Wishing him the best as he recovers.
Leedawg
June 8th, 2011
5:17 pm
To all you cynics: they drafted the young man as a show of grace for a player who’s life has been turned upside down. He surely would have been drafted in the first three rounds had he been healthy. He’ll remember this for the rest of his life. Great gesture by the Rangers.
Chuck Allison, Sean (political correctness?) and Lemon Scab: go jump off a bridge in front of a moving freight train to stop the waste of breathing air the rest of us could obviously make better use of.
Diana Ybarra
June 8th, 2011
5:21 pm
Proud to be from Texas….Great move Rangers!! Your #1 in my book!!
Mark (another one)
June 8th, 2011
5:23 pm
The Rangers said they did this to honor JT. This young man has been a fighter, but he needs support. This was something the Rangers could do to honor him, and it is appreciated. I will always thing of this act of kindness when I hear mention of the Rangers.
JT, DGD and finish the drill. Congratulations.
DKY
June 8th, 2011
5:27 pm
Awesome move!
Contractor
June 8th, 2011
5:39 pm
Hell of a move by the Rangers. A move that put tears into this 27 year old guys eyes right there. Good deeds like this is what makes me believe kindness and civility aren’t all lost. Classy move by the Rangers organization. Get well soon #2.
Joe B.
June 8th, 2011
5:43 pm
Real class would be giving the kid a $200,000 signing bonus to help his family. If they do that, then I will bow to their good will. Until then, I just think it’s a gesture aimed to get Cone to sign for less money.
RAMBLE ON!!!
June 8th, 2011
5:45 pm
Well now I guess I have a team in the American League I can pull for now.
Classy move Rangers.
Go Jackets!!!
Marie
June 8th, 2011
5:48 pm
Chuck Allison, Sean, and Scab – what Leedawg said!
It’s hard to believe a person would write something negative about this story – way to go SCAB.
Nice job, Rangers! Prayers, prayers, and more prayers for JT!
Deborah Jackson
June 8th, 2011
5:52 pm
I have Faith in God anything is possible through Christ If it’s Gods will JT will walk again and already be in position to play. Johnathan Taylor keep Praying and Believing GOD and let God’s will be done He will take care of you.
YoungerThan ThatNow
June 8th, 2011
5:53 pm
Who cares why Texas drafted JT or if he will ever produce anything for their organization!! Nothing but good can come of this from both sides, as we’re seeing by the posts on this blog alone… except for the couple of obvious brainless dipwads! But, who knows what the future holds.
Congratulations to JT and huge kudos to the Texas Rangers… two winners in my book!!
Today I became a lifelong Texas Rangers fan « ……..GA Jim
June 8th, 2011
5:57 pm
[...] You can read the rest here. [...]
dbalcer
June 8th, 2011
6:04 pm
What a classy act. I too have a second favorite team to root for now.
aw
June 8th, 2011
6:04 pm
CLASSY!!! Georgia Bulldog and Texas Rangers. Like it. Lots of respect for the Rangers!!!
Hotty Toddy!
51WTGW50
June 8th, 2011
6:05 pm
hey it is not like the kid was fighting (now called Play wrestling/hugging) in front of a glass wind and fell to his death. it is not like his parents are now trying to sue the hotel for a FREE GET RICH scheme. This PLAYER was HURT Bad while playing a GAME HE LOVED. It is GREAT the GAME is willing to GIVE BACK to the young man and his family.
Yes, I am a TECH fan too.
tony tee
June 8th, 2011
6:08 pm
The best professional move made all year; Rangers are Angels!!!!!!!!Braves…..Dawg
wally
June 8th, 2011
6:10 pm
WISHING THE BEST FOR JT. IT WAS A GOOD YEAR FOR THE BULLDOGS AND IT COULD HAVE BEEN A GREATER YEAR WITH JT. I AM ALREADY LOOKING FORWARD TO 2012 UGA BASEBALL. I TRUST THAT PERNO WILL GET SOME GOOD RECRUITS AND WHO KNOW OMAHA MAY NOT BE TOO FAR IN THE FUTURE
Rangers Draft Injured Bulldog — Peach Pundit
June 8th, 2011
7:23 pm
[...] easy to be cynical about the world but every now and then a story like this comes along: the Texas Rangers have selected Jonathan Taylor in the 33rd round of the Major League Baseball draft. Currently, the 5-8, 181-pound Taylor, is an [...]
Texas Rangers say paralyzed UGA OF ‘deserved to be drafted’
June 9th, 2011
12:59 pm
[...] “The kid, he’s obviously going through a tough time, and this was a way to let him know that people are thinking about him,” Ryan Coe, the Texas Rangers scout for Georgia, told the AJC. [...]
» The Daily Six Shooter June 9, 2011
June 9th, 2011
1:08 pm
[...] story until now. The Texas Rangers pulled one of the classiest moves any organization ever has by drafting Georgia outfielder Jonathan Taylor, who is paralyzed from the waist down after colliding with teammate Zach Cone whom the Rangers [...]
There was competition between MLB teams to draft Johnathan Taylor, says report | UGA sports blog
June 10th, 2011
12:13 am
[...] The Texas Rangers selecting paralyzed UGA outfielder Johnathan Taylor in the 33d round of Wednesday’s MLB Draft because “he deserved the honor of being drafted” was one of the feel-good stories of the summer (go here for full story). [...]
Rewind: UGA football recruiting gets kick in pants it needed | UGA sports blog
June 13th, 2011
11:51 am
[...] hopeful you all got to see where the Texas Rangers absolutely buried the class meter by selecting Georgia’s Taylor in the Major League Baseball draft. There was plenty written about it here and elsewhere but there is a pretty cool video interview [...]