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Former Yankees fan favorite outfielder leaves Mets to become MLB free agent
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- Former Yankees fan favorite outfielder leaves Mets to become MLB free agent
Former Yankees fan favorite outfielder leaves Mets to become MLB free agent originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
The New York Mets lost outfield depth in the organization on Wednesday.
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An eight-year Major League veteran was granted his release after he triggered the opt-out clause in his contract.
According to the New York Post's Jon Heyman , left-handed hitter Mike Tauchman is now a free agent after the Mets released the 35-year-old from his minor league deal.
"Mike Tauchman exercised the out in his Mets contract and is now an ex-Met," Heyman wrote on X.
It's an interesting way for Heyman to report Tauchman's decision, given that he stated the obvious.
Tauchman had a breakout season in a fourth outfielder role with the New York Yankees in 2019, hitting a career-high 13 home runs with an .865 OPS while accumulating a 3.9 bWAR in just 87 games.
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That remains the best offensive season of Tauchman's career, but he managed to produce some strong on-base percentages during his time with the Chicago Cubs and Chicago White Sox .
MORE: Tigers receive lousy grade for Tarik Skubal trade to Dodgers from ESPN
This past spring training, it appeared that Tauchman had a more than solid chance of breaking camp with the Mets, but he suffered a meniscus tear one week before Opening Day.
The injury kept Tauchman off the field for three months, and he played at four different levels in New York's minor league system while rehabbing.
In 18 games at Triple-A Syracuse, Tauchman hit .213/.343/.262 with 13 hits, 10 walks and 11 strikeouts in 73 trips to the plate.
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