The New York Mets acquired second baseman Marcus Semien from the Texas Rangers in a trade for outfielder Brandon Nimmo earlier this week. At 35, Semien brings elite defense, highlighted by his second Gold Glove season, but faces questions about his offense and leadership contributions. Semien addressed these topics in an introductory conference call, expressing confidence in a rebound.
Marcus Semien, recently traded to the Mets for Brandon Nimmo, emphasized his defensive prowess during an introductory conference call. At age 35, Semien is coming off his second Gold Glove season and ranks third in Outs Above Average among Major League second basemen since shifting full-time to the position in 2023.
Offensively, Semien has declined since finishing third in American League MVP voting in 2023, with his OPS+ dropping from 126 that year to 103 in 2024 and 97 last season. However, Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns believes in a potential bounce-back, citing similar underlying metrics to Semien's standout 2023 campaign. Semien slashed .270/.338/.464 over his final 71 games last season before a season-ending injury—a broken bone and sprained ligament in his left foot from fouling off a pitch—halted his momentum.
Semien has already spoken with incoming director of hitting Jeff Albert and plans discussions with hitting coach Troy Snitker to sustain production. "At this point in my career, it feels extremely good to have a team that believes in me, sees what I do well, wants to help me," Semien said. "Offensively, I think that I still have a lot to offer. I’m disappointed in the way that I performed offensively last year."
A former 30-homer threat who hit 45 for the Blue Jays in 2021, Semien aims to return to MVP-caliber form in the Mets' lineup.
On leadership, Semien was the Rangers' de facto captain but joins a veteran Mets group including Francisco Lindor, Juan Soto, Sean Manaea, and potentially Pete Alonso. With 1,629 career games—more than any current Met—Semien hopes to fill Nimmo's clubhouse void. "That’s very important to me," he said. "That’s something that’s always been a goal of mine in whatever clubhouse I’m in."
Drawing from trades early in his career from the White Sox to the A's, time in Toronto, and his 2022 arrival in Texas, Semien focuses on leading by example. "The one thing that has remained constant for me is leading by example with how I work, leading by example with how I respect each member of the organization, treating everybody like a man or a woman," Semien said. "I’m mostly talking about my teammates here—respect them, help them through tough times, get to know them as a person, get to know their families. So then when we go out to battle, we know how each other is going to react."