Where Luis Robert Jr. ranks among starting NY Mets CFs in the David Stearns era

Center field is an important position that hasn’t exactly been solidified by the New York Mets since the departure of Carlos Beltran. Juan Lagares teased us but shortcomings as a hitter made him a brief flash with excellent defense. Michael Conforto quickly showed us he belonged in a corner spot and other than a year or two of Brandon Nimmo actually looking superb there, he also reminded us why center field wasn’t his jam.

In the David Stearns era, currently in year three, multiple center fielders have tried to fill the role. Unfortunately, many have come up short. Both trades and free agency have yielded some incredibly unimpressed results.

As hopeful as we are that A.J. Ewing ends up as the solution, a second-half slump sends a shivering reminder of how long it takes even the most promising of players to establish themselves in the big leagues.

Six Mets players have had a chance to win the starting center field job for the Mets since Stearns took over in 2024. The tenure of two ended this summer with Luis Robert Jr. going on waivers as the least ceremonial. How do they all rank?

Ranking the starting Mets center fielders in the David Stearns era

6) Jose Siri - .292 OPS, 16 games, -0.5 bWAR

No center field option was more limited than Jose Siri who broke his leg early in the year and disappeared for virtually all of 2025. Only 2 for 32 with a .292 OPS and a -0.2 WAR on defense in those limited chances, Siri couldn’t even do the bare minimum in a very small amount of chances.

5) Cedric Mullins - .565 OPS, 42 games, 0.4 bWAR

I would’ve guessed Cedric Mullins had a far worse bWAR. Rating slightly better than average on defense and offense despite the .565 OPS, we know the reality. Mullins was a major trade deadline bust who hit only .182. His moment of failing to leg out a double when Daylen Lile failed to catch a ball in left field continues to haunt the 2025 failures.

4) Harrison Bader - .657 OPS, 143 games, 0.9 bWAR

The Mets kept Harrison Bader away from scooters and healthy in 2024. Unfortunately, he finished with only a .657 OPS. It was an okay year on offense with a cooling off around mid-season. His defense rated well even though he didn’t really give us any classic moments. Only a little worse than we should have expected, there’s no hard feelings with Bader.

3) Luis Robert Jr. - .702 OPS, 58 games, 0.8 bWAR

Hilariously, the best OPS on this list belongs to Luis Robert Jr. This wasn’t close to the exceptional results we had hoped to get from him. Limited to only 58 games, Robert had a forgettable Mets stint that statistically beat out what he had been doing in his final two years with the Chicago White Sox. His defense was what we needed it to be, too.

2) A.J. Ewing - .663 OPS, 97 games, 2.3 bWAR

There’s still time for A.J. Ewing to climb this list and by the end of the 2026 season, there’s a good chance he is better than third. His numbers have dropped significantly in recent weeks and while the defense has remained Gold Glove-caliber, it hasn’t been enough to make up for the slumping bat. The biggest difference between Ewing and Robert is the playing time for Ewing to accumulate such a notably higher bWAR thanks in large part to his defense. At the plate, it’s close to a draw with Robert’s power as his biggest advantage.

1) Tyrone Taylor - .677 OPS, 310 games, 3.8 bWAR

The only player on this list who actually lasted more than a season, Tyrone Taylor came to the Mets as outfield depth and finished as a hot trade deadline candidate. He won playing time over Bader and while his .677 OPS was below the .746 he had with the Milwaukee Brewers, it was mostly due to a lack of power in 2025 when he clobbered only 2 home runs in 341 chances. Taylor kind of met expectations exactly.

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