Center field has been a circus for the Mets against the Washington Nationals, but help is on the way with Tyrone Taylor potentially nearing a return. The outfielder, who has been out with a hamstring strain since late August, will play Sunday with Triple-A Syracuse. The Mets will then make a decision to either activate him off the injured list or to figure out another step for him to take in his rehab assignment.
However, the options are limited. The Triple-A season ends Sunday, and the Mets do not have plans to send him to Double-A to play in the Eastern League championship series. The team is off Monday ahead of the start of their road series against the Chicago Cubs.
Should he return for the series at Wrigley Field, a defense that has been subpar at best this weekend will get a needed boost. Cedric Mullins, acquired at the trade deadline from the Baltimore Orioles for his bat and his defense, has struggled since coming to New York on both sides of the ball. Jose Siri, activated only recently after missing most of the season with a broken tibia, has shown some obvious signs of rust.
Mullins misplayed a fly ball in the 11th inning on Saturday afternoon, leading to a two-run inside-the-park home run. It’s tough to think of a more Mets-like way to lose a game. Even worse, the Cincinnati Reds beat the Cubs to move within one game of the Mets in the NL Wild Card standings.
Daylen Lile drove a sinker from Tyler Rogers back to the center field wall. It sailed over the head of Mullins, who scrambled to play it off the bounce. The defense was shifted for Rogers, a submariner whose unconventional delivery leads to weak contact and ground-ball outs. But Lile barreled up the first pitch he saw from the right-hander, and drove it 401 feet back.
Mullins couldn’t make the catch off the carom, with the ball bouncing off the wall well past him, forcing him to retreat to center field. The automatic runner scored, Mullins hit the cutoff man — Francisco Lindor — but the throw home went over the catcher’s head, allowing the speedy Lile to score.
Taylor might not give the Mets a ton of offensive production, which is why the Mets traded for Mullins, but he’s an elite defender capable of giving the Mets a quality at-bat and using his speed to get on base. He’s hit just .218 with a .592 OPS this season. The numbers are well below his career averages, but he’s been as streaky as the rest of this season, with a strong start in April and May, before falling off in June and July, then re-finding his bat once again in August before the injury.
SENGA’S NEXT STEP
Right-hander Kodai Senga will throw live batting practice this week in Florida, either Tuesday or Wednesday. His chances of making a postseason roster are fading, but the Mets aren’t ready to make any decisions until that playoff spot is closer to being locked up. Currently, the Cincinnati Reds are a single game back from the Mets in the Wild Card standings, and own the tiebreaker. The Arizona Diamondbacks are two games back from the Mets.
ROSTER MOVES
Left-hander Sean Manaea was reinstated from the paternity list Sunday to make his tandem start with Clay Holmes. Right-hander Chris Devenski was designated for assignment in a corresponding transaction.
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