The New York Mets just added another piece of the 2021 season puzzle. No, it’s not another player: at least not yet. It’s Tony Tarasco, who will take over as the team’s first base coach for next year.
The 50-year-old, according to SNY, will also oversee the team’s base-running and outfielders. The Mets made the announcement on Wednesday afternoon.
Tarasco spent the last five years with the San Diego Padres, but not as a first base coach. He was the Friars’ minor league high performance and outfield/base-running coordinator. He also has some managing experience, as he was the skipper for the Padres’ Class-A team, the Lake Elsinore Storm, in the 2019 season. He took them to the California League finals.
Tarasco has been a member of MLB teams’ coaching staffs since 2005 with the Washington Nationals. There, he was the first base coach between 2013 and 2015. The Mets are hoping he can add bring his experience.
With the Nats, Tarasco also had other positions, including minor league outfielder/base-running coordinator.
The Mets’ new analytics guy
Tarasco has a firm grasp on analytics. As MetsMerized.com suggests, having another coach on Luis Rojas’ staff that has an understanding of the analytics can only be beneficial for the Mets moving forward.
Before coaching, the new Mets’ face was a player. He participated in 457 games in MLB, with a .240/.313/.397 line, 34 home runs and 39 steals. His wRC+ was 83. He retired in a Mets’ uniform, as it was the last team he played with back in 2002.
He also played with the Atlanta Braves, Montreal Expos, Baltimore Orioles, Cincinnati Reds and the New York Yankees.
Tony DeFrancesco, the former Mets’ first base coach, will now move to other endeavors but will still be in the organization. He will take a front office role, specifically as a senior advisor of player development and scouting.