Looking to recalibrate their rosters for 2026 and beyond, the Mets and Rangers pulled off a one-for-one blockbuster on Sunday night, flipping a pair of players signed to long-term deals. Outfielder Brandon Nimmo is headed to Arlington. Second baseman Marcus Semien is on his way to Queens.
The 32-year-old Nimmo agreed to waive his no-trade clause, which was part of the eight-year, $162 million contract he signed with New York in December 2022. Semien, 35, inked a seven-year, $175 million deal with Texas one year prior.
TRADE DETAILS
Mets receive: 2B Marcus Semien
Rangers receive: OF Brandon Nimmo
Here is a breakdown of this intriguing deal from all angles, via MLB.com experts.
Why it makes sense for the Mets
Via Mets beat writer Anthony DiComo
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 roster flexibility with the acquisition of Semien.
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 president of baseball operations David 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 options to replace him, including using Jeff McNeil or top 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 options, according to a source. MORE >
Why it makes sense for the Rangers
Via Rangers beat writer Kennedi Landry
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. 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.
Meanwhile, Nimmo set personal bests with 25 home runs, 92 RBIs and a 50.2% hard-hit rate in 2025, his age-32 season. He should help a Rangers team ranked 25th in wRC+ (92), 26th in slugging (.381) and 22nd in runs (684) this past season.
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. In the outfield, Texas has a pair of young potential stars Wyatt Langford and Evan Carter, but the depth thins out after that. MORE >
Diving deep
Via analyst Mike Petriello
In terms of name value, Sunday night’s deal was a blockbuster, sending a three-time Top-3 MVP finalist in Semien to New York for Nimmo, who had been in the organization for 14 years and – as we proved out last summer – was one of the most underappreciated players in decades for any team.
In terms of near-term on-field value, though? It might not be as seismic as the names would indicate. Semien, 35, just posted a .305 on-base percentage that was his lowest full-season mark since 2016 to go with a career-low .364 slugging that was one of the 10 lightest by any qualified hitter. Nimmo, 33 in March, put up fine-looking surface stats (25 HR and 92 RBI), but with some moderately concerning decline trends under the hood — a huge collapse in walk rate to go with speed and defense numbers that now rank slightly below-average, after years of being good to strong.
What it’s about, really, is shaking things up for two lineups coming off of disappointing seasons. The Mets have said they want to improve their defense; well, Semien isn’t the superstar glove he once was, but he was +7 outs above average last year, still one of the better second basemen around. The Rangers want to improve their offense; well, Nimmo was more productive than Semien last year, and he’s younger, too. Maybe there’s a side benefit for New York of opening up an outfield spot for a Tucker or a Bellinger; maybe, with second base locked down, a move of McNeil and/or Brett Baty and/or Ronny Mauricio is coming next.
Maybe, too, they look at the more advanced metrics that show these two were closer hitters than you’d think last year. Nimmo had dozens more RBIs, yes, but he also had 44 more plate appearances with runners on, which explains some of the added RBIs — Semien actually hit better than Nimmo with runners on. The Rangers get their desire too: Only three teams, all among baseball’s worst, hit for less left-handed power than they did. Nimmo ought to help with that, for now, particularly with outfield now a big need after Adolis García was non-tendered after two down seasons.
It comes down, really, to fit. Neither side could simply bring back the same roster, yet neither player is really at the same star level they once were, meaning a trade, if one was coming, kind of had to be like this one — a somewhat similar swap of somewhat similar big names on somewhat similar big contracts. Nimmo is two years younger, but his contract is two years longer, too, and so that’s a big part of it for New York: Three years of Semien or five years of Nimmo? Nimmo might be a DH by the end of that term, and on a roster that already has Juan Soto and may yet return Pete Alonso, that simply wasn’t a tenable future. Texas might get the better player right now — and they may also be looking wistfully at the Mets in 2029 and ‘30.
Stat to know
Via MLB.com research staff
Even though Semien didn’t produce the offensive numbers we’ve come to expect from him in 2025, his defense remained stellar. He captured his second Gold Glove and recorded +7 outs above average and a +6 fielding run value.
The Mets’ infield, by comparison, had the 10th-worst FRV this past season, at minus-7.