Mets shake up core by acquiring Semien from Rangers for Nimmo

NEW YORK -- Brandon Nimmo, the longest-tenured Met and one of the most popular players in recent franchise history, is heading to Texas in a blockbuster trade that shakes up the team’s core.

The Mets on Monday finalized a deal to send Nimmo and cash to the Rangers for second baseman Marcus Semien, changing the complexion of New York’s roster in one significant stroke.

The deal abruptly ends Nimmo’s tenure after 10 largely productive seasons in Queens amid an eight-year, $162 million contract that was meant to make Nimmo a Met for life. Instead he will join longtime teammate Jacob deGrom in Texas, while the Mets increase their defense and roster flexibility with the acquisition of Semien.

“These are difficult deals to put together,” Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns said on a conference call Monday. “You're talking about two very established players. You're talking about two players who are embedded in their organizations, who have had success there.”

One of the game’s better defensive second basemen, Semien was also one of baseball’s most prolific offensive infielders as recently as 2023, when he finished third in American League MVP voting with a season that saw him hit 29 homers, drive in 100 runs, steal 14 bases, produce an .826 OPS and compile 7.7 Wins Above Replacement. Now 35 years old, Semien has not been nearly that kind of player over the past two seasons, but he remains a solid contributor who won a Gold Glove in 2025.

More than anything, Semien’s presence gives the Mets significantly increased flexibility while helping Stearns fulfill his stated goal of improving New York’s run prevention. Nimmo, who will be 33 on Opening Day, is coming off one of the worst defensive seasons of his career. The Mets now have multiple options to replace him, including using Jeff McNeil or No. 2 prospect Carson Benge in left field, or pursuing a big-money free-agent outfielder such as Kyle Tucker or Cody Bellinger. They are considering all of those avenues, according to a source, and Stearns added Monday that the Mets are willing to continue adding significant payroll to improve the club.

The intangible price of that flexibility was parting with a lifetime Met who won over a hardscrabble fan base with his “aw shucks” demeanor and effervescent personality. The Mets’ first-round Draft pick in 2011, Nimmo broke into the Majors five years later and became part of the team’s core with a standout season in 2018, showcasing a keen batting eye that made him one of the game’s best at reaching base.

Three consecutive injury-plagued seasons followed, but since 2022, Nimmo has been one of baseball’s most durable players, averaging 152 games per season in those four seasons. Along the way, he fundamentally changed his game, becoming less of an on-base machine and more of a power threat. Since 2023, Nimmo has hit between 23 and 25 home runs every season.

Had Nimmo stuck around Flushing, he might have someday had his No. 9 retired at Citi Field. Instead he joins a long list of popular Mets to spend the back half of their career in other places. Moments after officially announcing the trade, the Mets’ social media channels blasted out an image featuring smiling photos of Nimmo alongside the caption: “Thank you.”

“It was something we had to think about, no question,” Stearns said of Nimmo’s popularity with the fan base. “That certainly makes decisions like this a little bit more challenging than they otherwise would be. But at the end of the day, I still felt like this was the right decision for the organization.”

“There is truly no way I could adequately put into words how much my tenure with the Mets has meant to me," Nimmo said in a social media statement. "All I can say is thank you.”

Because Nimmo had a full no-trade clause in the eight-year contract he negotiated prior to the 2023 season, the deal required his approval. He has $105 million remaining on that contract.

Semien, who signed a seven-year, $175 million contract with the Rangers in December 2021, did not have a no-trade clause. He has $72 million remaining on his contract, and the Mets are sending $5 million to Texas to offset the difference in remaining salaries, a source confirmed.

More than monetary concerns for the Mets, the deal shakes up the core offensive unit of Nimmo, McNeil, Francisco Lindor and Pete Alonso that has largely proven unsuccessful since its founding in 2021. (Outside of a run to the National League Championship Series in 2024, that core has won just one other playoff game in half a decade, despite some of the largest payrolls in Major League history.) Alonso is a free agent and could also sign elsewhere, though the Mets retain interest in re-signing him.

“I think it's a recognition that what we did last year wasn't good enough,” Stearns said of the Nimmo trade, “and running back the exact same group wasn't the right thing to do.”