Juan Soto discusses Mets’ failure despite lofty expectations for 2025
After the Mets were eliminated from playoff contention on the season’s final day, Juan Soto discussed what went wrong on Sept. 28, 2025, in Miami.
The first major change to the Mets’ roster for the 2026 season came in an astonishing trade on Sunday night.
Lifelong Met Brandon Nimmo has been traded to the Rangers in exchange for infielder Marcus Semien, according to multiple reports. ESPN’s Jeff Passan was the first to report the deal.
The 32-year-old Nimmo had a full no-trade clause that needed to be waived to make a deal happen.
The exchange charts a new direction for the Mets, who had penciled in Nimmo into left field for the foreseeable future. The 35-year-old Semien fulfills Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns’ vision for better run prevention off of the disappointing 2025 campaign.
Nimmo has five years remaining on his eight-year, $162 million contract while Semien has three more years left on his seven-year, $175 million deal. Nimmo is being paid $20.25 million annually while Semien is due to make $26 million in each of the next three seasons.
What Marcus Semien brings to the table for the Mets
Throughout his 13 major league seasons, Semien has been one of the best all-around second basemen in baseball.
The three-time All-Star is coming off his second Gold Glove of his career in 2025. In 127 games last season, he slashed .230/.305/.364 with 15 home runs, 62 RBI, 62 runs, 16 doubles and 11 stolen bases. He missed the final month of the season with a left foot fracture and sprained Lisfranc ligament.
Semien, who helped the Rangers claim a World Series crown in 2023, has finished third in MVP voting three times including that season. One of his best campaigns came back in 2021 as a member of the Blue Jays when he tagged 45 home runs, drove in 102 runs and scored 115 runs while batting .265.
Before this past season, Semien had played 159 games or more in every full season since 2019.
The move signals a potential migration from Jeff McNeil, who has served as the Mets’ primary second baseman since 2021.
What are the Mets missing without Brandon Nimmo
For Mets fans, this one cuts deep — whether or not it made sense from a team-building perspective.
Nimmo was viewed as one of the leaders in the Mets clubhouse, a consistent hustler who left it all on the field throughout his tenure with the team, which began when he was drafted in the first round of the 2011 MLB Draft.
In 155 games last season, Nimmo slashed .262/.324/.436 with career highs in home runs (25) and RBI (92), along with 81 runs and 13 stolen bases.
Despite his offensive spark, Nimmo finished with a -1 outs above average in his 150 games in the outfield. He has a checkered injury history, including a chronic neck issue stemming from a 2019 collision, plantar fasciitis late in 2024 and sprained shoulder joint in 2023.