Cocaine distribution sentencing awaits one-time baseball prospect

It is inevitable to see can’t-miss sports prospects fall to the wayside sometimes before fully reaching their potential, and in some cases their stories of misfortune can be cautionary — even downright tragic — tales.

Brien Taylor’s troubled life is just that. Twenty years down the road, the one-time star prospect for the New York Yankees is now facing up to 40 years in federal prison on crack cocaine distribution charges.

Taylor was once the top pick in the 1991 professional baseball draft, and he had been awarded a $1.55 million bonus by the New York Yankees. But instead of becoming a professional star, Taylor was recently indicted by a grand jury and later convicted on a drug charge that could put him behind bars — possibly for the rest of his life.

Taylor’s career had gotten off to a strong start in the minor leagues, but in 1993 he was involved in a fight that damaged his pitching arm, requiring major surgery and a year away from the game. That all but spelled the end of his career. Although he played four more seasons, Taylor never appeared in more than 13 games a year.

Taylor was released in 1998 and tried to make a return to the majors in 2000. But his return bid failed, and he was done with baseball at the age of 28.

Such stories serve as sad reminders that even with well-intentioned individuals (a Yankees pitching coach described Taylor as “a great kid” who “worked like hell)”, a single mistake can lead to a series of dire circumstances.

A criminal defense attorney with a deep well of experience defending against drug charges can help secure an outcome for a defendant that fully promotes his or her best interests.

Source: ESPN, “Brien Taylor facing up to 40 years,” Willie Weinbaum, Nov. 1, 2012