Yankees Should Trade for Under-the-Radar Surging Mets Bat

Tyrone Taylor and the New York Yankees have a history with each other this season. Up 6-3 in the ninth against the Mets, with runners on second and third, David Bednar hung a curveball down the heart of the plate, and Taylor took him deep.

With the August 3rd trade deadline less than a week away, there's a chance for more history. The Yankees desperately need to fix their outfield since both Aaron Judge and Cody Bellinger are out, and Taylor is one of the more competent defensive players in the league.

At the time of the Bednar homer, Taylor was your typical glove-first type of player. Even after that home run, he was hitting .188/.207/.325 with a 44 wRC+. Things changed shortly after that. He went down with a hip injury later that month, and then when he returned, he started crushing baseballs in ways that he really never had in his career.

Tyrone Taylor last 15 games:

.387 BA
6 HR
12 RBI

Taylor is expected to be traded at the deadline.pic.twitter.com/YrqUF08JcT
— Underdog MLB (@UnderdogMLB) July 28, 2026

Taylor may not end up being the biggest name traded at the deadline, but if the Mets do decide to deal him, and Brian Cashman makes one of those rare deals with his Flushing brethren, there's an opportunity to snag one of the more underrated bats available. On top of that, he can catch a baseball, which is a plus these days for the Yankees.

Tyrone Taylor's resurgence

Taylor returned at the end of June, and since then, he has not only been hot at the plate, but his underlying metrics support this as something that isn't just a fluke run. In Taylor's last 44 plate appearances, he is slashing .410/.477/.974. He has six homers and 13 RBI. During this span, he has averaged 91.9 MPH exit velocity, a 22.6% barrel rate, and a 51.6% hard-hit rate.

New York Mets center fielder Tyrone Taylor (28) reacts after hitting a three run home run during the ninth inning against the New York Yankees at Citi Field. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

This is just not the type of player Taylor was before that injury. He had an average exit velocity of 86.2 MPH, a 6.1% barrel rate, and a 30.5% hard-hit rate. He had five barrels total. Following that June return, he eclipsed that number and barreled seven balls that he put in play.

The beauty of Taylor isn't that he's a right-handed bat who can slot into the middle to bottom of the lineup, finally adding depth to what has been a cavalcade of listless bats, but he can catch a ball, too.

With him in the outfield, the Yankees wouldn't be worried about situations where they found themselves this week, where Max Schuemann gives up on a ball, and Amed Rosario flinches as it drops in front of him. Taylor has been more than capable in his career with the glove. Spencer Jones is technically the best outfielder they currently have, and that needs to change.

A competent outfielder

While Taylor's defensive metrics have lagged this year, it shouldn't hold them back from making a deal for him. He has a -1 OAA and 3 DRS in the outfield, but over the course of his career, he has a 20 OAA and 40 DRS out there.

Taylor could play any position, and Aaron Boone would find that he would be competent just about anywhere. It's not anything he could say about the guys he is throwing out there these days.

There's a real opportunity here to make that rare deal with the Mets, and potentially fill some other holes by landing Luke Weaver, one of the better relief pitchers available, not named Mason Miller, as well as old friend Clay Holmes, who is now a starter.

Those Mets could be a one-stop shop, and considering that David Stearns has been prolific at breaking the hearts of their organization's fans, helping the Yankees out could keep that heartbreak train rolling.

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