Mets Monday Morning GM: 3 smaller roster decisions paying off early

New York Mets spring training was abundantly tame this year because of the lack of major roster decisions. Most of the notable ones were smaller choices they could just as easily reverse. An example: choosing DJ Stewart over Mark Vientos.

Small decisions like this one have worked out well for the team regardless of how long it took for Stewart to start hitting. Expanding even beyond those Opening Day roster decisions, these three smaller ones from the winter seem to be paying off big.

1) Keeping journeyman Reed Garrett around

Find someone who demanded the Mets keep Reed Garrett around this offseason and I’ll find you one or two liars. One of those liars being the person who demanded it, the other possibly being the one who found this first liar.

Garrett was an irrelevant part of the 2023 Mets. His forgettable 17 innings spanning 9 appearances resulted in a 5.82 ERA. The veteran journeyman was bound to get DFA’d eventually but thank goodness he wasn’t.

Garrett may have only stuck with the Mets because of his remaining minor league option which was used before we got to spring training. Upon seeing they needed to improve the bullpen, Garrett was promoted and has been one of the best pitchers on the club.

It’s unprecedented how good Garrett has been. Although limited in big league action prior to joining the Mets, he never had a season ERA below the 6.41 he had in 2023 split between his time with the Mets and Baltimore Orioles.

Garrett has gained our trust and a whole lot of leash to have a bad day on the mound. He deserves 99% of the credit for this career turnaround. Hand the other 1% to those who had enough faith in him to not look for an upgrade. Chances are they wouldn’t have found one.

2) Acquiring Tyrone Taylor in a trade to be more than your typical fourth outfielder

Love this move. Adding Tyrone Taylor in a trade as “the other guy” in the deal with the Milwaukee Brewers was brilliant. The trade seemed to, for most, be more about getting an affordable starting pitcher onto the Mets staff. Adrian Houser seemed like a more than capable fifth starter. He hasn’t shown enough since coming to New York. Taylor, on the other hand, has been used perfectly.

Taylor always should have been more than a typical fourth or fifth outfielder for the Mets. By boldly putting him in the middle of the order early on in 2024 against left-handed pitchers, the Mets made a statement that they believe in this guy. He has rewarded them with frequent hits, his usual brand of quality defense, and a pair of legs with a pair of wheels on the ankle.

One way to describe Taylor could be “toolsy” except he’s much more than a guy with a great glove, speed, or power. He has a little bit of everything. Unable to fully showcase this with Milwaukee, the Brewers haphazardly chose to deal him away this offseason likely due to his lack of minor league options and their abundance of outfielders on the depth chart. No worries. We’ll take care of him.

The best part of it all is that Taylor is under team control for a few more years. The Brewers don’t burn out too much service time with him and now the Mets can benefit.

We should, of course, expect Taylor’s numbers to come back down as the season progresses. The important thing will be to still regularly mix him into the rotation even when J.D. Martinez is back. Taylor seems to do best when playing often. A day of rest for some of the regulars and some pinch hitting opportunities for Taylor throughout the year is a way to continue this.