The Mets and Rangers swapped veteran hitters Marcus Semien and Brandon Nimmo, and the move could impact the A’s chances in the AL West.
On Sunday afternoon, the New York Mets and Texas Rangers agreed to swap three-time All-Star Marcus Semien for veteran outfielder Brandon Nimmo. The move comes after Nimmo’s name came up in trade discussions, and he waived his no-trade clause to accept the deal to Texas.
Just a few years ago, Marcus Semien agreed to a 7-year deal worth $175 million with the Rangers. With just 3 years remaining on the deal for $26 million for 2026 and 2027, and then $20 million in 2028, the Mets will have a very experienced second baseman to play alongside their superstar shortstop, Francisco Lindor.
Like Semien, Brandon Nimmo is also locked up through his age-37 season, and will make $20.5 million in each of the next 5 seasons. Neither player has quite played up to their expensive contracts, but they can still be big parts of their new lineups in 2026. This move also appears to be saving the Mets a little money over time.
Following the trade, Marcus Semien will now be out of the A’s division, as he spent six years with the green and gold from 2015 to 2020. However, a more dangerous bat will enter the Rangers’ lineup in Brandon Nimmo, who posted a .262 batting average and a .760 OPS in 2025, and took a small step down defensively.
Earlier this week, the Rangers elected to non-tender outfielder Adolis Garcia, and quickly filled that spot with Nimmo. This will be a huge upgrade offensively for the Rangers, as the team looks to be in the hunt for the playoffs once again in 2026.
The Rangers finished at 81-81, with the A’s finishing 5 losses shy of them at 76-86. With the Astros and Mariners losing some big free agents this winter, there could certainly be a shot for either the A’s or Rangers to compete for the best in the division.
Notably, Brandon Nimmo has regressed defensively to around league average. He was in the 42nd percentile in range, 51st percentile in arm value, and 48th percentile in arm strength. The 32-year-old was also in the 46th percentile in sprint speed. In 2024, Nimmo was nearly in the 70th percentile in all of those categories.
Even though he showed regression defensively, he improved offensively from 2024 to 2025. He improved his batting average by 38 points from .224 to .262, and 34 points on his OPS.
Many Mets fans and writers noted how good of a person Nimmo was for their clubhouse, and now he will join a younger Rangers team, and likely be a big leader for them. It’s still very early in the MLB offseason, but the Rangers have already gone out and improved their outfield. If the A’s want to compete with them next season, they’re going to have to go out and improve their team as well.
