How Francisco Lindor, Tyrone Taylor's Impending Returns Will Impact Mets' Bench

Francisco Lindor and Tyrone Taylor are closing in on returns from the injured list. How will the Mets' bench be impacted by these key additions?

Here's how the Mets bench's outlook is shaping up ahead of Francisco Lindor and Tyrone Taylor's returns. | David Banks-Imagn Images

The Mets are poised to get some key reinforcements back from the injured list in the coming week. Francisco Lindor appears to be just days away from a return after playing a full nine innings at Triple-A Syracuse on Sunday, potentially completing a short rehab assignment in the process.

Mets' manager Carlos Mendoza said prior to Sunday night's game against the Philadelphia Phillies that Lindor is "getting close" to a return to the lineup (h/t SNY Mets). MLB.com's Anthony DiComo also reported that the tentative target for Lindor would appear to be Wednesday at the earliest after a simulated game tomorrow followed by an off day on Tuesday.

Nothing official, but sounds like the Mets are leaning toward not having Francisco Lindor back until at least Wednesday. He could play in a simulated game tomorrow at Citi Field, followed by an off day Tuesday. https://t.co/nbGbgnstUt

— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) June 21, 2026

Weather could impact those plans, however, as rain is in the forecast for the New York area early this week, so the Mets may push things back a day to avoid risking re-injury on a wet field. It also looks like outfielder Tyrone Taylor, whose rehab assignment moved up to Syracuse with Lindor's on Sunday, may not be far behind but will need more rehab games since he wasn't as aggressive with the simulated games as Lindor was.

How Francisco Lindor and Tyrone Taylor's returns will affect the Mets' bench

The Mets will be very happy to get two key contributors back, but they will also need to make room for both Lindor and Taylor on the active roster. As a result, two members of the Mets' bench figure to be on their way out the door within the next seven to 10 days.

Lindor figures to be back first, and the easiest move here would be to designate the recently claimed Zach Short for assignment. The Mets can use Bo Bichette at shortstop when Lindor needs a rest day, so keeping a pure backup shortstop on the roster is redundant.

Since Short is out of options, the Mets would have to waive him to try to get him down to Triple-A Syracuse, which they recently did with Vidal Brujan. They won't run into the option problem with Taylor's return, as either MJ Melendez or Eric Wagaman would appear to be the next man going back to the minors.

MJ Melendez's outlook with the Mets is up in the air before reinforcements arrive. | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

The easy call would be Melendez, who has had some moments for the Mets but is hitting just .191 with four home runs and 11 RBI in 110 at-bats. Melendez has been serving primarily as a designated hitter, but the Mets could fill that role by using Francisco Alvarez there while catching Luis Torrens on a primary basis.

The fact that Wagaman is right-handed could also play to his benefit since the Mets are loaded with left-handed bats, leaving them vulnerable against tough lefties, as we saw on Saturday against Cristopher Sánchez. The real pressure point for the bench, however, could come if the Mets can get either Luis Robert Jr. or Jorge Polanco back off the injured list.

Neither appears close to returning, although Polanco is currently on a rehab assignment with an eye towards DHing at some point. If Polanco is able to make it back, the next men up (barring any further injuries that reset the math) are Wagaman and Mark Vientos, whose playing time has shrunk considerably over the past few weeks.

There isn't really a great argument to keep Vientos, who has been one of the worst position players in baseball, but the Mets appear to have some belief that his power potential would make him an effective option in a lefty/righty first base platoon with Jared Young. Wagaman is also capable of playing that position, so if we start to see Wagaman get first base reps, it would be a bad sign for Vientos's future.

Wagaman has minor league options remaining, while Vientos doesn't, so if the Mets want to make the safe move, Wagaman would go down in that scenario. We are a long way from that point, however, so the Mets will surely give Vientos every chance to earn his spot on the roster as they face more lefties in the coming weeks.