Tyrone

Taylor

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.

Taylor barely played during the first three weeks after Cedric Mullins was acquired at the trade deadline, but he got some extra time last week with Brandon Nimmo down, and given another chance to start tonight over Mullins against a left-hander, he had one of his best showings of the year, with his one out being a 103-mph liner to center with a .610 xBA. He still figures to play mostly against lefties going forward, but he should be in there again Tuesday with Jesús Luzardo on the mound for the Phillies.

Nimmo will sit out his second straight game after making an early exit from Wednesday’s contest with neck stiffness, which has been a recurring problem for him the past couple years. It’ll be Tyrone Taylor in left field on Friday night for the second straight game.

No real surprise here after Nimmo was removed from Wednesday night’s contest with neck stiffness, which has been a recurring issue the past couple years. The 32-year-old corner outfielder is presumably day-to-day heading into Friday’s series opener against Atlanta. It’ll be Tyrone Taylor taking over in left field on Thursday afternoon.