Tim Tebow named All-Star with Mets’ Double-A affiliate

When Tim Tebow signed a minor league contract with the Mets in 2016, many called it a publicity stunt. Now, he’s an All-Star.

When the Eastern League announced its All-Star roster on Friday, one name stood out above the others: Tim Tebow. Tebow was one of five Binghamton Rumble Ponies to be named All-Stars.

No, this isn’t a joke. Tebow has been one of the most productive hitters in the Eastern League this season – particularly over the last month. Tebow is slashing .318/.357/.455 over the past 22 games. Those are certainly solid numbers for a guy whose promotion was looked at as a disgrace by many around baseball.

Tebow’s recent hot streak boosts his season slash line to .261/.335/.398. In 67 games thus far, he’s hit five home runs and driven in 30 RBIs with a .733 OPS. Those numbers certainly aren’t elite, but again, many took this guy’s baseball aspirations as a big joke. Also, this is Double-A baseball in the Eastern League, not the bigs, after all.

Most fans around baseball probably forgot about Tebow and his journey through the minor leagues. Now that he’s back on their radars, rumblings about his shot at the Mets roster are sure to surface. Mets general manager Sandy Alderson said in February that he believes Tebow will, someday, play for the major league team in Flushing.

With the Mets floundering in late June, 14 games under .500, it’s hard to rule anything out. Outfielders Yoenis Cespedes and Jay Bruce are both on the 10-day disabled list. Center fielder Juan Lagares is on the 60-day disabled list. For crying out loud, the Mets recently brought in Jose Bautista, who hit .203 in 2017 and is playing for his third team in the last calendar year.

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Tebow isn’t on the 40-man roster, so it’d take some maneuvering to call him up. But, what do the Mets have to lose?