2) Defense in center field over any offensive consistency
The plan in center field was for Jose Siri and Tyrone Taylor to share duties. Siri exited with a broken leg early. We’ve seen Taylor and large doses of Jeff McNeil in center field since. McNeil has saved the Mets from this being a complete black hole. Taylor has played his usual brand of superb defense. Offensively, he isn’t contributing nearly enough.
It’s a tough debate. Are there more runs saved by the glove work than there are lost at the plate? Statistics can say one thing. The frustration of having Taylor, a guy with an OPS under .600, getting the bulk of work at the position negates a lot of the argument when you’re already short offensively at other positions.
Other roster plans would have made this more acceptable. If the Mets got more out of Francisco Alvarez, they could have survived with an offensive vacancy in center field. The same goes for third base and even the second base alternatives to McNeil. If only one of the players from that group was playing better, we’d all be a little more willing to let Taylor remain in center field.
Taylor filled in admirably last year late in the season when Harrison Bader slumped. Unfortunately, too much playing time has been bestowed on him early on this year. He can absolutely stick around, just not for as many innings as he has already.