When Tyron Taylor did the MetsIn the Opening Day lineup, the 30-year-old was not expected to contribute much offensively to the team. But after Wednesday 9-1 victory over the Pirates, the outfielder’s perception may have to change.
On Wednesday, Taylor had three hits, but it was his two-run single in the sixth that caught the eye.
With two outs and the Mets holding a 2-1 lead, Taylor – who started and appeared in just his 15th game of the season – hit a 95 mph fastball up the middle to open the scoring,
The Mets would score two more runs, but the manager Carlos Mendoza called the moment “huge.”
“The one thing I like about Taylor is that he’s ready to play all the time,” the first-year captain said after the game. “As a coach, you know he is ready to play in any situation. And we’ve seen that since the beginning of spring training.”
“I’m so grateful to be here with this group every day, no matter what my role is,” Taylor said. “I try to be prepared as if I were going to play every day. That’s the mindset I have to maintain and do what I have to do.”
Taylor spent his first five seasons with the Brewers and played in more than 80 games in three of those years. So while his role on the bench doesn’t come as a surprise to Taylor, he has used this experience to become a hidden weapon outside of the bench.
In his last two games, the outfielder is 4-for-6 with two RBI, but Mendoza says he’s confident going for Taylor, whether off the bench or in the starting lineup, and he believes this recent run is sustainable.
“He’s short on the ball and ready to hit the fastball,” Mendoza explained. “You have to be able to hit the fastball and we saw that in spring training and here he is. I like the hitting and I see a good hitter at the plate now.
Taylor is a career .244 hitter, but after Wednesday’s game he is batting .341. The California native credits the constant adjustments he made in the offseason to his approach to start this season, including using the lower half of his body to drive throws.
“I just try to do my best every day. I work hard in practice. I have a game plan and I am consistent with my work,” she said. “I have the mentality to improve every day.”
Taylor’s contributions are just one of the many reasons why the Mets are on their current run of success. New York has won nine of its last 12 games and is at its best performance of the season, two games above .500.
After an 0-5 start, all the wins lately have been contagious and, according to Taylor, created a different mindset in the locker room.
“We have a great group here. We had fun playing for each other,” Taylor said. “It creates a winning mentality. It’s cool to see we’ve gotten some wins lately.”
The Mets look to continue their winning ways this weekend when they travel to Los Angeles to face the Dodgers in a three-game set.
