With the final bullpen spot still in limbo, the Mets added a slew of players in training camp, signing veteran Mike Tauchman to a minor league contract, Will Sammon of The Athletic reported. Tauchman, despite being on a minor league contract, will have a very open opportunity to add to a strong roster.
As one could easily surmise, Tauchman, now 35, already exists. Tauchman was originally drafted by the Colorado Rockies in the 10th round in 2013 and worked his way through his minor league career before making his major league debut in 2017 with the Rockies. He bounced between the Rockies and Triple-A Albuquerque during the 2018 season, never establishing himself as a major league regular.
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That changed before the 2019 season, when he was traded to the Yankees and immediately became a strong contributor for the Yankees, hitting .277/.361/.504 (128 wRC+) with 3.0 fWAR in just 89 games.
2020 and 2021 were not good for Tauchman as a shoulder injury hampered him in 2020. He hit just .242/.342/.305 (79 wRC+) in the COVID-shortened season. 2021 has been tougher for him, hitting .181/.284/.283 (63 wRC+) between the Yankees and Giants.
In 2022, he took his talents to South Korea to play for the Hanwha Eagles. He performed well in Korea, batting .289/.366/.430, earning himself another MLB opportunity, this time with his hometown Chicago Cubs. He spent the past three years in Chicago, two with the Cubs (2023 and 2024) and one with the White Sox (2025) before becoming a free agent this winter. He was very consistent over those three seasons, posting 108, 110, and 115 wRC+ in 108, 109, and 93 games respectively. Although he’s now more of a corner outfielder than center fielder, he’s also scoring average defensively.
Tauchman is a solid but unspectacular major league contributor who could do wonders for the Mets’ bullpen if he makes the team. Recently signed MJ Melendez still has a minor league option, so they have the ability to keep both in the organization if Tauchman can operate aggressively. His ability to help out on the right wing if Carson Benge is in trouble and provide another option for Carlos Mendoza if Brett Baty is on the floor makes this lineup easy to imagine. On top of that, Luis Robert Jr. has had his share of injuries during his career, and while Tauchman is no longer a center fielder, he can provide cover in right field if Benji has to shift if he’s injured.
