Shortly before Opening Day 2019, Mike Tauchman was acquired from the Colorado Rockies in exchange for relief prospect Phillip Diehl. Although it was merely a minor depth trade at the time, Tauchman took advantage of his opportunity and burst onto the scene. In 87 games, he slashed .277/.361/.504 with a 128 wRC+ and 2.6 fWAR, all while flashing borderline-elite defensive numbers: 19 defensive runs saved and nine outs above average, which ranked him in the 94th percentile among all major leaguers.
When Tauchman returned from the calf strain that cut his previous season short, his success unfortunately did not continue.