Rangers add outfielder Nimmo in deal with Mets for Semien
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ARLINGTON -- The reign of the Rangers’ Iron Man has come to an end.
The Mets and Rangers completed a one-for-one blockbuster trade on Monday that sent outfielder Brandon Nimmo to Texas and second baseman Marcus Semien to New York. The Rangers also received cash considerations from the Mets in the deal.
Semien and shortstop Corey Seager joined the Rangers going into the 2022 season and together led the club to the first World Series title in franchise history. But not much has gone right since then.
“Marcus came here after a 100-loss season, chose to come here and be part of our organization in hopes of helping us win our first World Series championship,” said president of baseball operations Chris Young. “We are, as an organization, forever grateful to Marcus for all that he accomplished here in his time. Marcus is a championship-caliber player and certainly is going to go do great things for the New York Mets. In order to get great players, you have to give up great players. We feel like this was a decision that was necessary for us.”
The 35-year-old Semien is coming off a disappointing year at the plate as he batted .230 with a .669 OPS through 127 games. His 15 home runs were his fewest in a non-shortened season since 2018. However, Semien’s defense remained strong, highlighted by +7 outs above average, placing him in the 92nd percentile in MLB. He also earned his second Gold Glove.
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“The business of baseball was cruel to us today,” Semien said after Friday’s non-tender deadline, when World Series heroes Adolis García, Jonah Heim and Josh Sborz became free agents. “They are World Series champions and All-Stars that I got to play with. To be able to experience those things with those guys was special. We're only two years removed from that. It makes me sad.”
Semien was an All-Star in 2023-24, but he hadn't been able to regain his form over the past year and a half as the Rangers' offense struggled following the '23 World Series.
At the moment, the Rangers still have utilitymen Josh Smith, Ezequiel Duran and Sam Haggerty on the roster to fill the void at second base. Smith won a Silver Slugger Award at the utility position in 2024.
The Rangers also have Cody Freeman, who played 36 games as a rookie in 2025, available to play multiple infield positions if necessary.
“There is no pecking order,” Young said. “Right now, it stands as a competition. I think competition for the roster is a wonderful thing. Josh Smith, Zeke Duran, Cody Freeman, Sam Haggerty, Michael Helman all can play second base. I think it's certainly wide open. These guys all have opportunities to come into camp hungry and to win a job.”
Nimmo, who signed an eight-year $162 million contract before the 2023 season, agreed to waive his full no-trade clause. He has $102.5 million remaining on that deal, and according to MLB Network insider Jon Heyman, New York is sending $5 million to Texas to offset the transaction.
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 that deal.
“[Nimmo is] a left-handed bat, it's platoon neutral, and he obviously is a complete player,” said general manager Ross Fenstermaker. “He's been one of, in my opinion, the more underrated players in this game. He’s just a really good, complete, all-around player. He’s somebody that wants to win championships. He fits really well into the fabric of our roster and what we're ultimately trying to accomplish.”
Nimmo, who was a first-round Draft pick by the Mets in 2011 and has spent his entire 10-year MLB career with the club, set personal bests with 25 home runs, 92 RBIs and a 50.2% hard-hit rate in 2025, his age-32 season. He is joining a Rangers team that ranked 25th in wRC+ (92), 26th in slugging (.381) and 22nd in runs (684) this past season.
Texas has a pair of young potential stars in Wyatt Langford and Evan Carter, but the depth thins out afterward with utilitymen like Smith, Duran and Haggerty, as well as rookie Alejandro Osuna.
Nimmo is capable of playing all three outfield positions, but right field is the Rangers’ most obvious hole following García’s departure. Nimmo has played 93 career games in right field, but none since 2020.
“We're not 100 percent committed to [Nimmo in right],” Young said. “I think it's likely where he'll play, but [those are] conversations that we'll have with Brandon, with [manager] Skip [Schumaker] and with Wyatt, and really making sure that we understand all aspects of this and where they're most comfortable. I do think we have three very good, talented, very talented outfielders. At the outset, I think it's likely Brandon plays right, but I think that's a further conversation.”