Mets minor leaguer injured after he was attacked in attempted robbery

A New York Mets Triple-A prospect was hit over the back of his head with a tire iron and a sock full of rocks as a homeless man attempted to steal his wallet in a vicious daylight attack in Salt Lake City.

Logan Taylor, a 25-year-old reliever with the Las Vegas 51s, was walking down a street on Saturday afternoon when he was approached by a man who asked him for his wallet.

Taylor refused to give up the wallet to the man and carried on walking, but he was struck around the neck from behind, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. The would-be thief then attempted to steal Taylor's wallet again, but eventually ran off without taking anything.

Police in the area gave chase and caught up with the suspect. They detained him using "a Taser to take him into custody," Salt Lake City police detective Greg Wilking said.

The 51s said Taylor was sent to the hospital with severe lacerations to the back of his head. He needed six or seven staples in his head and was diagnosed with a concussion before being released.He has been placed on the disabled list.

"There were a couple guys that saw it, Dom [Smith] and [Kevin] McGowan," 51s manager Pedro Lopez said of Taylor's teammates, as quoted in the Review-Journal. "They tried to go after the guy when they realized it was Logan, but [the police] ended up catching the guy later on."

Joshua Cruz, 33, was arrested on charges of aggravated robbery and failure to stop at command of law enforcement. Bail was set at $2,500.

The Mets told the Review-Journal they are aware of the incident and said in a statement, "It's in the hands of the police now and we can't comment further."