The Mets have traded fan favorite outfielder Brandon Nimmo to the Texas Rangers in exchange for the surehanded second baseman Marcus Semien. On the surface this trade hurts because Nimmo was a huge part of the Mets for nearly a decade, but it may foreshadow what might be in store for the New York Metropolitans this winter.
Big Spenders, Big Disappointment
The Mets are obviously coming off a disappointing season, they missed the playoffs after being big spenders in the offseason bringing in superstar Juan Soto. After being the best team in baseball through the first two months of the season, they were absolutely abysmal down the stretch and eliminated from the playoffs on the last day of the regular season. To make matters worse, the Mets doubled down at the trade deadline bringing in duds Cedric Mullins and Ryan Helsley among others, ultimately guys who did more harm than good for the Amazin’s during their collapse this past season. It’s clear that things need to change and Mr. Moneybags, Mets owner Steve Cohen, will seemingly not shy away from throwing his weight around to fix this team. The 2025 Mets were the second team ever to miss the playoffs with a $300 Million dollar roster. Who was the first team you ask? The 2023 Mets… Cohen may have all the money in the world, and on paper he seems to be making a splash . But things just keep getting derailed, maybe it’s a player evaluation problem, maybe it’s a coaching problem but it’s a problem nonetheless.
Hate to see him go
It always sucks when your team moves on from a player who has been such an integral piece for so long, especially when that guy has spent his entire career with the team. The Mets selected Brandon Nimmo with the 13th of first round of the 2011 MLB draft and at the time it was a little bit of a controversial pick as he didn’t even play high school baseball. Nimmo was born and raised in Cheyenne Wyoming, one of only 3 states (at the time) that did not offer high school baseball as a sanctioned activity. As a result, Nimmo had to cut his teeth in the American Legion League but clearly he was able to make a name for himself, being ranked the #35 overall prospect for his draft class.
The dichotomy of Brandon Nimmo was something that I think all Mets fans appreciated, the small town county boy that came to the Big Apple and played the game the right way. Ever since Nimmo made his debut with the Mets in 2016, he endeared himself to the fanbase by making some amazing plays on defense, coming in clutch at the plate and doing his signature sprint down to first every time he drew a walk. Needless to say Brandon Nimmo was one of those guys your father would say was a “hell of a ball player”. His numbers in the blue and orange weren’t all that spectacular, but he was consistent, reliable and a constant through the ups and downs over the past decade. I would’ve loved to see him hoist a World Series trophy with the Mets, and I wish him the best of luck down in Arlington.
Grading the Trade
Under a microscope, this trade seems fairly even with very little to move the needle. Both players are on the wrong side of 30, both have multiple years left on their contracts and both have seemed to have run their course with their current teams. Brandon Nimmo is 32 with 5 years remaining on his 8 year $162 Million deal, Semien is 35 with 3 years left on his 7 year $175 Million deal. Nimmo has the edge at the plate recording 25 HRs and 92 RBIs while batting .262 the past season, while Semien hit 15 HRs and 62 RBIs with a .230 average. The big upside for Marcus Semien is in the field where he’s coming off his second Gold Glove award this past season. WAR feels like such a bullshit stat but despite trailing Nimmo is almost every offensive metric, Marcus Semien had a higher WAR this past season which really shows you how good he is in the field. Nimmo has really been a liability in the field, he clearly lost a step this past season after dealing with a plantar fasciitis in the 2024 and he always kind of had a noodle arm. We’ll see how much either of these guys have left in the tank going into 2026, honestly I would be surprised if either of these guys played out the entirety of their remaining contracts.
On the defensive side of the diamond this is a pretty significant upgrade and really solidifies the middle infield. This also means that the Mets are probably going to move on from another fan favorite Jeff McNeil, who had previously played a majority of his games at second base. Young platooners at the position Luis Angel Acuna, Ronny Mauricio and Brett Baty may be pieces that could be dealt this off season as well. With a spot now open in the outfield, Kyle Tucker is surely a big name Cohen and Mets could target to replace Nimmo. The question as always; how much are the winning to spend?
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