LOS ANGELES – While New York loves to highlight its biggest and flashiest stars, two bros have been a pair of unsung heroes for arguably the hottest team in baseball.
Their names? Tyrone Taylor and D.J. Stewart.
These guys are pretty new to the Big Apple, as this is Taylor’s first year with the team and Stewart’s second.
Before being a part of the Mets, Taylor was drafted by the Brewers in the second round of the 2012 MLB draft out of Torrance High School in Southern California. He made his MLB debut for them back in 2019 and would be with the organization until the 2023 season before being traded to New York in December of last year. During his time in Milwaukee, he had a slashline of .239/.294/.451.
While Taylor has not been an everyday starter for the team and is more of a utility man, he is certainly making the most of his chances when given the opportunity. He’s only played two complete games in his last 10 big league appearances, but in that stretch, he’s batting .421, with one homer, seven RBI, two runs scored, and an OPS of .979.
In his first 14 games, he’s hitting .318, with 10 RBI and the one home run, as well as an on-base percentage of .354 and a slugging percentage of .432.
DJ Stewart AKA “The Big Stew”
Stewart played high school ball in Jacksonville Florida, and then spent two years playing college baseball for Florida State. He was drafted by the Orioles with the 25th overall pick and made his debut with the team in 2018. His final season in Baltimore was in 2022, where he slashed .213/.327/.400.
He then signed a minor league contract with the Mets for the 2023 season and was eventually elevated to the major league roster on July 4th. From that point forward, Stewart was balling. In 58 games, he had 11 home runs, 26 RBI, with a slashline of .244/.333.506. His play was so impressive that the team decided to bring him back on a one-year deal for 2024.
Stewart is off to an even better start to 2024. Although he’s not as consistent as Taylor, when he makes contact, look out.
Entering Monday night’s game, he had a .235 average, three home runs, 10 RBI, with an on-base percentage of .426 and a .559 slugging percentage.
Stewart has also been really hot in his last 10 appearances entering Monday, with a .320 average and an OPS of 1.246.
The Mets have had a very up-and-down start to the year, as they were 4-7 in their first 11 games, but have won eight of their last 11, sitting at 12-10 fighting to stay in the NL East mix.
Although they made the playoffs in 2022, New York finished way below expectations last season, with a sub-.500 record and missing the postseason. Last year proved for them that it won’t just be their stars that will elevate them from good to great, but it’s going to take everyone. If Taylor and Stewart can keep exceeding expectations, the Mets will be in good shape.
On a special night, where a very rare Super Blue moon rose in the sky, Mets fans were treated to what will be more remembered in Queens as the “DJ Stewart game”.
The New York Mets avoided a three-game sweep at the hands of the Texas Rangers, prevailing 6-5.
Playing against a Rangers club with multiple All-Stars, it was Stewart who shined brightest on the field, blasting two home runs and driving in four runs. In the 10th inning, facing Aroldis Chapman with the bases loaded, DJ was hit with the first pitch of the at-bat, ending the game on a walk off hit-by-pitch, Stewart’s first career walk-off RBI.
"I love New York. I really enjoy being here. My family enjoys it, so I'm hoping I'm doing enough to stay here."
DJ hadn’t had much success against “The Cuban Missle” in his career, going 0-4, with three strike outs prior to his game winning at-bat. However, it was that kind’ve night.
The two bro bombs on the night were the 4th multi home run game of his career, and the second this year with the Mets. DJ has now hit eight home runs in his last 13 games. He’s batting .378, 8 HRS, with a 1.406 OPS over that span.
DJ also showed he’s more than just a one-dimensional player by robbing fellow MLBbro Marcus Semien, of an extra base hit in the 9th inning, holding onto the ball while crashing into the right centerfield wall, effectively saving the game before walking it off.
Much has been said about the power Stewart has displayed, but his defense has been solid in right field. The energy he provided to the team fueled the Mets win and had the home fans chanting his name.
Looking to earn a spot-on next year’s big-league roster, Stewart has made a great impression so far. Sometimes high draft picks take more time to develop, and franchises run out of patience under the pressure to win. Some of these same players never get an opportunity to prove their worth before being forced out of the league.
The timing seems just seems right in Queens for DJ.
It appears that his hard work in the cage, desire to feed his family through pro baseball, plus manager Buck Showalter’s trust in him, are starting to bear fruit.
We don’t want to overreact, as we know, players often get hot and go cold. But, if Stewart can continue to play this way — the way he was expected to play when he was drafted as a first-round pick in 2015 — he will have a job with the Mets, or perhaps some other MLB team.
Jaelen Gilkey reports on Mets player DJ Stewart who has been squaring up baseball’s left and right for the disappointing New York Mets and trying to work his way into the batting order permanently for next season.
Despite struggling to reach expectations for this season, the New York Mets, with the highest payroll in baseball, surprised many around the league when they decided to become sellers at the trade deadline.
Moving star pitchers Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer for key prospects, along with sending off MLBbro Tommy Pham, who’s enjoying a resurrection year, solidified the fact that the Mets were punting on the 2023 season.
It also meant playing time would be up for grabs as the team turns to the Minor Leagues to find a diamond in the rough.
Originally called up to the big league club from Triple-A on July 4th, Stewart’s playing time increased this month following Tommy Pham’s departure.
DJ Stewart Producing For Mets: Who Is He?
With the opportunity he has been given, DJ has shown he can produce, flashing great power at the plate.
Just last week, during a two-game set with the Pittsburgh Pirates, Stewart went 4-for-6 with three home runs, three runs scored and five RBI’s. His best game came on Wednesday night as he hit two homers in an 8-3 Mets win.
If the name DJ Stewart is unfamiliar to you, just know, he’s didn’t come out of nowhere. Son of Reggie Stewart, a former 13th round pick by the San Diego Padres in 1991, the 29-year-old, was originally selected by the New York Yankees in the 28th round of the 2012 draft out of high school.
DJ decided to play ball at Florida State, enjoying a stellar college career before being drafted again in 2015, this time by the Baltimore Orioles, in the first round.
In 30 games during the 2020 shortened season, DJ experienced his greatest success in the majors, registering an .810 OPS.
Stewart hit .213, with 26 home runs, 73 runs scored and 75 RBIs in his 195 games with the Baltimore Orioles, showing tremendous potential as an everyday starter.
Following last season, he opted to become a free agent, eventually signing with the Metropolitans.
Stewart has a batting average of .220 with 11 hits, four home runs, eight RBIs and six runs scored in 26 games for the Mets this season. Along with his potential at the plate, he is also no slouch defensively, as he has made several nice defensive plays in the outfield since being called up.
DJ has been presented with a great opportunity in front of him to prove he’s worthy of being a starter or key rotation player on a big league ball club. His journey these past few years seasons have given him the fuel to get it done.
Via MLB.com: “I Love this game and I had injury issues. I know what I’m capable of doing whenever I’m healthy,” Stewart said. “What kept me going was getting back to the big leagues. This game is unbelievable. I don’t take it for granted playing at the big-league level. I have a little girl. Diapers are not cheap. That’s what keeps me going.”
Corner outfielder DJ Stewart is chomping at the bit for the Baltimore Orioles to open the gates of opportunity. And due to unforeseen circumstances, it seems the time is now.
News broke over the weekend that the Baltimore Orioles had to place two players on the Covid-19 injured list, of which one is an outfielder.
With no timetable for a return, Stewart is an MLBbro who should get the ultimate green light.
After a few bright spots earlier in the season, the lone bird was relegated to the bench as others usurped him like the newly found All-Star Cedric Mullins, whose career continues to ascend.
In 191 plate appearances, Stewart, who struck out 66 times, is hitting .205 with an on-base percentage of .311.
He’s accounted for 27 walks, 24 RBI, seven home runs, and six doubles,showing that the potential is there.
The glovework wasn’t helping his case for more playing time either.
His difficulties on the defense took center stage when he misjudged a ball in the leftfield vs. the New York Yankees, leading to a concussion.
Peace does not come without conflict.
After finishing his collegiate career with the Florida State Seminoles, the 27-year-old slashed .344/.481/.570 with an OPS of 1.051 and 27 long balls. A dominant college career led to Stewart getting selected 25th in the 2015 MLB Draft.
Like most draftees, Stewart stayed committed to his craft as he spent three years in the Minor Leagues.
Stewart struggled to adjust to pro pitching and had down years in 2015 and 2016, before he eventually taking his game to the next level by slashing .279/.389/.448 during Single-A ball.
He continued his climb during the 2017 season as he raked .278/.378/.481 in 457 digs in the dirt. He continued to display serious power potential and set a career-high for the Bowie Baysox with 21 home runs.
Numbers such as those had fans and the team executives clamoring for the organization to call up the new bird.
So, in 2018, as the entire league expanded their rosters during the waning months of the season, DJ did what most baseball fans dream of by making his debut in the show.
2019 brought a plethora of injuries for the young sensation, and 2020 was the pandemic – shortened season in which Stewart spent most of the year balancing acts with the Orioles while also receiving rehab stints before eventually going on a tear.
When he gets rolling, their are few players who can match Stewart’s power surge.
During the early parts of September, he hit six homers in as many games.
Those kinds of numbers re-shined the spotlight on Stewart as the Orioles outfielder flashed potential by displaying power & grace at the plate.
For the black & orange, Stewart was repackaged ahead of the 2021 season like a newfound toy as his hot streak started against the globally known Yankees franchise, as mentioned earlier.
Unless the team calls up more competition, Stewart will have less to worry about as, like anything worth fighting for, consistency is the key to success.
Let the power slugger that runs like a gazelle continue to get more opportunities against big-league pitching to where he can hone his craft and come into his own as the spark is prevalent; he just needs something or someone to help light his fuse.
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