Tyrone

Taylor

Yonatan Henriquez singed in Jason Bay to win the game in the bottom of the ninth. Taylor suffered a power outage last season, hitting just two homers in 341 plate appearances for the Mets, so it’s good to see him hitting the ball a little farther this spring. He’ll probably open up as the team’s right fielder against left-handers and the backup to Luis Robert Jr. in center.

It was a no-doubter off lefty reliever Steven Okert, a 419-footer that left the bat at 106.0 miles per hour. Taylor seems ticketed for reserve duty behind Luis Robert Jr. this year and probably doesn’t have a real path to fantasy value barring several injuries ahead of him. It’s nice to see that the power is still there when he makes real contact.

It’s way too early to draw any firm conclusions, but the social media chatter hasn’t been overly positive as Bichette transitions to the hot corner in his Mets debut. His defense will be picked apart throughout spring training but there are few reservations from an offensive standpoint, which is the primary concern for fantasy managers. New York has already confirmed that he won’t take over at shortstop temporarily while Francisco Lindor recovers from a hamate injury. The other notable developments here are fellow offseason acquisition Marcus Semien in the leadoff spot with Juan Soto heading over to left field. Here is the full lineup: Semien (2B), Soto (LF), Bichette (3B), Tyrone Taylor (CF), Ronny Mauricio (SS), MJ Melendez (RF), Austin Barnes (C), Jose Rojas (1B) and Chris Suero (DH).

Robert has been largely ineffective the last two years and has quite the injury history, but he’s 28, he’s a legit center fielder and he has a career 111 OPS+. This is definitely worth a shot for the Mets, who will be responsible for paying $22 million for one year or $40 million for two. They’ll presumably handle him better than a White Sox organization that mostly expected position players to play through injury. Tyrone Taylor had topped the Mets’ depth chart in center, but now he’ll serve as the fourth outfielder he’s meant to be. He’ll presumably be on the short side of a platoon with Brett Baty in left initially, assuming the Carson Benge now starts off in Triple-A. With Acuña, who was out of options, departing, Ronny Mauricio seems poised for a utility role.

Taylor will hit free agency after the 2026 season. The 31-year-old posted an ugly .598 OPS in 2025, but still provides value because of his defensive ability.

Taylor returns to New York’s outfield mix after missing three and a half weeks recovering from a left hamstring strain. The 31-year-old’s experience as a pinch-hitting option likely was the reason they’re keeping him over fellow veteran outfielder Jose Siri for the home stretch and a possible playoff run.

The move qualifies as a bit of a surprise given New York’s proximity to the playoffs, but it doesn’t come as a complete stunner since there was going to be a roster crunch with Tyrone Taylor returning from the injured list. The 30-year-old outfielder made it back from the injured list earlier this month after missing nearly five months with a fractured tibia in his left leg. It’ll be Taylor and Cedric Mullins patrolling center field for the Mets down the home stretch.

Taylor will get some extra time off to rest and recover, which frees up the Mets to bring in a healthy bench player in Jared Young while he’s sidelined. It figures to be a relatively short stint on the shelf for the 31-year-old outfielder, but that’s not a lock. There should be a clearer timetable for his return at some point in the coming days, but he should be back by mid-September.

Taylor seemed to be coming for Cedric Mullins’ job last week, but he didn’t play Saturday or Sunday and this was obviously why. He’s apparently doing better now, so there are no plans to put him on the IL. Mullins is starting in center field for a third straight game today.

If you’re going to get a breather, getting a night off against Paul Skenes isn’t the worst thing in the world. Brett Baty will cover second base for the Mets on Friday night while Tyrone Taylor draws a start in center field and will bat eighth.