There’s a saying in baseball that playing time tends to work itself out. That appears to be the case in center field with Tyrone Taylor going on the injured list.
The Mets placed the center fielder on the 10-day IL on Tuesday, retroactive to August. 30, with a left hamstring strain. Cedric Mullins had been the odd man out after Taylor’s bat got hot in mid-August, and Jose Siri is currently working his way back to action on a rehab assignment with Triple-A Syracuse.
It’s unclear how long Taylor will be out. The Mets were hoping to avoid an IL stint for their best outfield defender, but after playing with a short bench for the last two games, they made the roster move.
Jared Young was recalled from Triple-A Syracuse.
“We didn’t want to push it and put him at risk,” manager Carlos Mendoza told reporters in Detroit on Tuesday. “We just decided to kinda slow this thing down and put him on the IL. Hopefully, it’s not for too long.”
Center Fielder/infielder Luisangel Acuña was called up Monday when rosters expanded. The Mets can use him in center if need be, and Young can play left field if Brandon Nimmo needs a break, as can Starling Marte, so the Mets are covered in the outfield.
Taylor had fallen out of favor after the Mets traded for Mullins at the deadline. An elite defender, the Mets needed more offense in the lineup and Taylor wasn’t providing it in July when he hit just .104 with a .157 OBP. But some competition has been good for Taylor. Over his last 10 games, he hit .423 with 1.077 OPS, providing a spark at the bottom of the order, allowing the Mets to turn it over and force pitchers to face Francisco Lindor and Juan Soto with extra outs.
Jesse Winker was shut down from baseball activities on his rehab assignment and will not return this season. The outfielder/DH was limited to only 26 games this season, going down in May with an oblique strain, then with a lower-back issue in July. His return was brief, only three at-bats in Baltimore right before the All-Star break. The Mets did what they could to get him healthy again, but back issues have plagued Winker throughout his career and he wasn’t able to recover after playing in rehab games.
He was signed to play a left-handed DH role, and the Mets haven’t had much of one without him.
“We miss that bat,” Mendoza said. “Jared Young has gotten some opportunities, he’s back here on the roster. Guys will continue to step up and get opportunities. At this point, it sucks for Wink, but we’ve got to get him right.”
ROTATION QUESTIONS
The Mets have not yet decided on a rotation for their weekend series against the Cincinnati Reds. The second leg of a three-city trip, left-hander David Peterson will likely start the series Friday, and Jonah Tong could get another turn through the rotation Saturday. Struggling starters Sean Manaea and Kodai Senga haven’t been ruled out for their next turn, but the Mets haven’t committed to keeping them in the rotation either.
