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Last time we spoke about Tyrone Taylor, it seemed like he was in line to be the starting center fielder for the 2026 Mets. Now, I’m a big fan of Taylor, but that was a touch grim given his .223/.279/.319 line last season. Clearly the front office felt the same and made major additions, bringing in Luis Robert to take over lead duties in center field and bumping Brett Baty to a super-utility role (one that will likely include some time on the grass) by bringing in Bo Bichette. Taylor now slots into a much more appropriate role as a fourth or even fifth outfielder.
This all works out rather well from a roster construction perspective. Against tough righties, Benge can slide over to center with Baty in left. Against a tough lefty, you can put Taylor out in left field for a game. If and when Robert goes down for his typical 50-game injury stint, Benge slides to center and Taylor becomes a more traditional 4th outfielder. It’s a well defined role that his matchup-specific offensive profile and high-end defense are very well suited for, and it’d be very reasonable to expect a bit of an offensive bounce back.
If this upsets you for whatever reason (I can’t fathom being a Tyrone Taylor hater), fear not, since it’s likely not a long-term arrangement. Taylor will reach free agency in 2027, and the Mets have a number of upper minors position prospects (A.J. Ewing, Jacob Reimer, maybe Ryan Clifford, even Nick Morabito as a reserve option) that may factor into the outfield picture in some way. It seems likely the Mets would move on in favor of younger, cheaper, higher-upside internal options going into next season.
Taylor’s tenure might not even make it that long though. A midseason trade for a reserve outfielder is very possible, perhaps someone like Ausin Hays once the White Sox have their inevitable trade-deadline sell. There’s even a non-zero chance the Mets make such an addition prior to the start of the season, though convincing a player better than Taylor to sign for such a marginal bench role is not always straightforward.
The trade to bring in Taylor was one of the first moves made by David Stearns when he joined the Mets. Counting this upcoming season, the Mets are on track to pay less than $10M for three years of strong fourth outfielder play, a good bit below what the market typically pays for this sort of player (as an example, Lane Thomas received more than $5M this offseason). It’s been a successful tenure all around, and we can appreciate this last go round with Taylor back in the right role.