Maybe the NY Mets aren’t just paying Tyrone Taylor $3.8 million for his defense

Predictably, the New York Mets decided to tender a contract to Tyrone Taylor. The speedy, defensive stalwart will get paid $3.8 million next year to possibly begin the year as the starting center fielder. It’s not permanent, but as he showed at times in each of the last two years, he can fill in pretty well to at least prevent runs.

Offensively, Taylor was much less useful for the Mets in 2025. His .701 OPS dropped to .598. In only 4 fewer plate appearances but far less games (130 vs. 113), we were reminded of a few things with Taylor.

He is a true fourth or fifth outfielder you don’t want to necessarily see in every box score. His $3.8 million was earned largely for his defensive prowess and capability to run. However, when looking at some advanced metrics, we see a way where maybe the Mets are convinced enough that he’ll have a better offensive year, too.

Mets outfielder Tyrone Taylor had an expected batting average much better than the results

Hitting .223 with a pair of home runs is light. But with a 36 point difference in expected batting average, tied for fourth in MLB last year, we see a different picture of what Taylor could have been.

Don’t confuse this with Taylor being anything more than what he was in 2024. He didn’t hit the ball hard at all. His Baseball Savant page could be cast in a Smurfs movie with all of the blue. Even hitting at a clip over .250 wouldn’t change the low number of balls he barrelled up. His average exit velocity was in the 8th percentile. If this was me in anything back in middle school, I would have been grounded for months.

For as down on we can feel about Taylor’s offensive performance in 2025, he made a leap further into elite territory with the way he played center field. With a run value of 8, it was a jump up from the 2 he was at the year prior. Only 29 players with enough qualified attempts were higher.

A limited player for sure, the Mets aren’t expecting him to be the solution, faint evidence suggests he can be useful. A .323 average with runners in scoring position and .279 in high-leverage spots, Taylor has been a quiet clutch player. The RISP average led the team in 2025. I think they’ll take the 0 for 4’s if it includes a 1 for 5 the next day with a 2-run single in the 8th inning in a come-from-behind win. Remember those?