It has been a long road back to the baseball diamond for Callaway junior Luke Taylor. As a sophomore, Taylor suffered a devastating knee injury during a game against Landmark Christian. Nearly a year later, Taylor returned to the diamond on the very same field he destroyed his knee at: Landmark Christian.

“It was really nerve-racking to be back out there on the same field that I got hurt on,” he said. “It was pretty scary at first, but once I had my first at-bat and ran the bases a little bit and got behind home plate it went away pretty quickly.”

Taylor is not quite 100% as he continues to work his way back, but he is already back to being an impact player on the diamond. It did not take Taylor long to reclaim his spot as the team’s starting catcher. 

“I’m close to 100%, I just need some rest every now and again,” Taylor said, smirking. 

The setback was truly devastating for Taylor, who was not cleared to return until January of this year. That meant essentially an entire season of high school baseball and travel ball were lost. Taylor lost out on a huge chance to build up a catalog of game film, leaving his future on the diamond after high school in limbo.

“The main goal over the next year is just staying healthy,” Taylor said. “I would still like to see if I can play at the next level. I didn’t really play travel ball last year, so I don’t really have anything out there for people to see.”

Taylor also missed running cross-country during his junior year. 

No matter how far baseball takes him, Taylor is not taking a game for granted anymore. The junior also suffered a shoulder injury during his freshman season.

Coach Dusty Hubbard is being cautious with his starting catcher because he has seen just how hard he is to replace. Taylor has sat out a couple of games this season and regularly has a pinch runner take his spot when he gets on base. There is no frustration or concern from Taylor, who is just happy to be back and contributing to a winning team (Callaway has won four games in a row to improve to 5-4 on the season).

“It feels so good just to be back out there,” Taylor said, smiling. “It took a little while to get back into the groove, but it felt so good just to get back out there.”

Sitting and watching Callaway make a run in the playoffs last year was one of the hardest things Taylor has had to do. While he was happy for his teammates, the nagging feeling that he could have helped the team go even further ate away at him.

“That was the hardest part honestly,” Taylor said. “It was so hard to watch my guys go out there and win in the first round and then fall to North Cobb knowing I could have helped the team.”

The no. 7 jersey is once again displayed under his catcher’s gear behind home plate. Even if bending down all game leaves his knee a little sore after a game day, Taylor would have it no other way.