NL DIVISION SERIES: PADRES VS BREWERS

October 7, 2026

Samad Taylor

Petco Park

San Diego Padres

Pregame 4 Press Conference

Q. Throughout the season we've talked about the opportunity you have with the Padres, showing up middle of the year, the impact you've had. Can you speak to on a personal level what this has meant to you not just to have a role in the regular season but now be starting games in the postseason?

SAMAD TAYLOR: It means everything. Like you said, just to get the opportunity. The last couple years, I was fighting to get back to the Big Leagues. It didn't happen, and then signed here in the off-season, got here, and like you said, the opportunity presented itself. I feel like the work that I did down in El Paso, it's showing now.

Just riding the high, keep it going, and just keep the boys rolling.

Q. It wasn't all easy for you this season. You had the success when you first got called up, then you went down with the oblique injury for a while, and then you came back and kind of picked up right where you left off. Can you speak to that part of the year when you had the injury and how difficult that probably was to deal with at that time considering you had just come up and had an impact?

SAMAD TAYLOR: Yeah, I tore my oblique in '22, so I kind of knew already what I was against. It wasn't as bad, so going into that knowing that it wasn't as bad, that was kind of a little mind clear.

Went down to Arizona, got to work. Training staff helped me get back on the field, and I got back. Like you said, I kind of got back to where I was. First couple days, it was a little rough getting back, but got back to where I was and helping the team.

Q. Game by game your role can look different. You're starting tonight. You can come in as a pinch runner, pinch hitter, whatever it might be. Can you speak to what your mindset in these postseason games in particular, as the game gets closer and closer, what's going through your head as far as what you need to do?

SAMAD TAYLOR: Just stay locked in. Stay locked in, stay stretching, moving around. Make sure I don't get caught blind sided. That's the big thing, just stay loose, stay calm, do whatever I can to ease the nerves. Whenever the name is called, just be ready.

Q. When you got here, the organization was very direct about what they expected and wanted from you -- havoc, spark plug, all those kinds of things. How helpful was that kind of having it be as direct, as straightforward as it was, in terms of what they wanted out of you?

SAMAD TAYLOR: It helped a lot. It just made everything easy. Made it fun to show up to the ballpark knowing what I had to do. What I had to do is what I've been doing previously, just play my game, doing whatever I can to help the team win.

Like I said, just play my game. That's the only thing I know is balls to the wall, and whatever happens happens.

Q. Kind of going off that question, spark plug, what kind of mentality does it take to be that energy guy every single day to do the nitty-gritty things that maybe some players don't want to do or don't do?

SAMAD TAYLOR: I wouldn't necessarily say want to do or not, being able to do. I was blessed with the talent to run and do the other things that people would say that they can't do, but it's my game. It's a game that I embrace. Like I said, I'm going to do whatever I can and go balls to the wall and whatever happens happens.

Q. How difficult were those two plays that Jackson Merrill made last night?

SAMAD TAYLOR: Just heard in the locker room, it was 1.6 outs above average or something in one game. How many times could you say somebody's done that in the game? You're talking about one of the best of the best in the outfield. Being able to see it every day has been tremendous. It's a blessing. Even though he's younger than me, I'm still learning things from him.

Yeah, you're talking about an elite athlete. Like I said, he's going to do the same thing that I'm going to do, balls to the wall, play his heart out, and whatever happens happens.

Q. Did you know he had them?

SAMAD TAYLOR: That first one, he covered some ground on that first one. Ball was hit. I knew he had a beat, but where he was positioned at first, I didn't think so. Then that glove went out, and I was like, oh, my God.

Like I said, you're talking about an elite athlete. You're talking about an elite center fielder. The ball is in the air long enough, it's going to get caught.

Q. You kind of went full spark plug there in the third inning. What was your favorite moment? Did anything stand out to you about that, getting the hit, sacrifice, scoring on the chopper, all that?

SAMAD TAYLOR: Croney's at-bat was the biggest at-bat to start that. Even though I got the base hit to lead the inning off, that was a big at-bat just off of kind of what the organization presents itself as. We kind of got away -- we haven't gotten away from the small ball. We'll bunt if we have to. You saw yesterday Manny showed a bunt even though he wasn't going to bunt.

But guys don't expect that. And to get in scoring position and get the job done, you can't ask for anything better than that. And Tati comes behind, and you got speed on the base pads, speed in the box, you got to make a play, and he put the ball in play, and they had to do something, and we scored a run.

Q. How would you describe the nature of this series, three incredibly tight, tense games?

SAMAD TAYLOR: You're talking about probably one of the best series in postseason, I would say, in my age group. It's electric. We love playing in front of San Diego. I love playing here. I love the organization. I love every one of those guys in the locker room. Whatever it takes, we're going to do it.

Q. When you talk about being a spark plug, how does being a spark plug in the playoffs compare to being a spark plug in the regular season?

SAMAD TAYLOR: It's win or go home. That's my mindset. Whatever I have to do, whatever the team has to do, whatever the guys have to do, it's going to get done.

Q. In that sense, how do you balance wanting to go 125 percent but also knowing you still need to make the smart plays there?

SAMAD TAYLOR: Like kind of how you just said. The game is going to present itself. Certain parts of the game will tell you whether or not certain plays are right or certain plays are wrong. I would like to say we've been playing this game long enough to where we kind of know what's right and what's wrong.

As long as we're doing our thing and we keep riding this high, anything can happen.

Q. What was the messaging like inside that clubhouse after losing those first two games in Milwaukee the way you guys did, and how mentally exhausting have these three straight one-run ball games been?

SAMAD TAYLOR: Just keep your head up. Everybody goes through stuff. Keep your head up, keep working, and we know we can come out on top. That was the message in itself. Not to dive deep into it, but just keep your head up, keep working. We go back home, and as you see, we love playing in front of a crowd, and home-field advantage is real. It's hard to play here.

Q. Was that message coming from Stammen or different guys in that clubhouse?

SAMAD TAYLOR: Manny in particular, the vet of all vets, I would say. Kind of everybody -- not necessarily everybody, but a game like that could suck the energy out of you, and it's easy for us to put our head down and mope around. In reality, we still had another game. We come home, and we've just got to play.

That was the big message. Just keep your head up and keep working, keep working, and this stuff's going to come out on top.