What should we expect from Marcus Semien?
Plus, a quick recap of Semien's introductory press conference with the media on Tuesday
What’s up with the Mets? 🍎
The odds of Carson Benge making the Opening Day roster continue to increase (MLB.com)
Embattled trade acquisition Ryan Helsley isn’t bothered by his experience in Queens (The Athletic)
Sentiment is out the window with David Stearns (Newsday)
Roster Moves 📰
Signed RHP Nick Burdi, LHP Anderson Severino, RHP Robert Stock, and OF José Ramos to minor league contracts with invites to major league spring training
The Just Mets Podcast 🎙️
ICYMI: Enjoy Rich MacLeod & Andrew Claudio’s instant reactions to the big Brandon Nimmo trade as they reflect on Nimmo’s time in Queens and explore newly available offseason avenues for further bolstering the roster.
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Quick Reactions to Marcus Semien’s introductory presser 🎤
Now officially a Met, Marcus Semien held an introductory press conference with the Mets media. Here are some key takeaways from the half hour:
When asked about his reaction to the trade, Semien said that he was surprised, but knew that ‘anything could happen.’ He expressed excitement about joining the Mets at such an exciting time, and was complimentary of the young talent he observed when the Rangers came to Citi Field last season.
Semien acknowledged Nimmo’s impact on the franchise and importance to the fanbase, and expressed a desire to connect with the fans and community in a similar way. He also said he knows it won’t be easy to step in and ‘replace’ Nimmo in the lineup, but that he’s excited for the challenge and to play in the city.
On playing in New York, Semien said that it’s his favorite city to play in on the road and that he appreciates it for everything it has to offer culturally. He also said he embraces the opportunity to play in front of this fanbase, and that playing under the bright lights is ‘what brings out the best in him.’
Semien was plainspoken about his disappointment in his offensive output last season, believing he was on the right course to correcting some issues before breaking his foot. He seemed excited to work with Jeff Albert and Troy Snitker, and indicated that he’d already started receiving ‘a lot of information.’ On the foot injury, he said he feels good and is ready to go.
Meet Marcus Semien ✍️
Marcus Semien is a three-time All-Star, a two-time Gold Glover, a two-time Silver Slugger, and a recent World Champion. He also happens to be ‘replacing’ one of the most beloved players to ever suit up for this franchise. Oh, and he’s 35 years old.
Still, despite some recent offensive struggles, Semien has demonstrated that he has more left in the tank than he has consistently put on display over the last few seasons. Between a bat that sparks occasionally and a glove that shines constantly, I think there’s still plenty of value left for Semien to provide this ballclub.
Let’s get to know the newest Met:
The Offense
There’s no denying that the last few seasons have not been kind to Semien at the plate. His recent output has been far from the standard he set for himself just two seasons ago when he won his second Silver Slugger. Last season was ugly, no way around it: Semien’s 89 wRC+ and 97 OPS+ were both among the worst marks in his career, and his underlying stats unfortunately don’t provide much of a silver lining. No, he doesn’t chase, and his plate discipline has never really been a problem — this isn’t a guy who’s just striking out constantly. The issue with Semien, mostly, has been that of ever-weakening batted ball output. He excels at pulling the ball down the line in the air, but in recent seasons, he hasn’t been generating enough pop behind the balls he puts in play to make them count (see his side-by-side upticks in soft contact rate, fly ball rate, and line drive rate…not a winning formula in the box.)
Still, Semien did win that recent Silver Slugger I mentioned (alongside a World Series ring), so it’s not like we’re talking about a sustained, years-long decline. And we’ve seen flashes of what he still has left in the tank as recently as this summer: in June, Semien hit .324 with a .932 OPS with 33 hits, 4 homers, 9 doubles, and 16 RBI in 115 plate appearances. While this outburst may look anomalous in the 2024-25 vacuum, the relentless optimist in me believes this stretch was less of an outlier than it seems.
Offensively, Semien has approached a sort of Robert Frostian crossroad in his career. Two paths lie before him: the George Springer path and the DJ LeMahieu path.
Optimistically, George Springer’s 2025 season provided us a reminder that no one is too old to rediscover themselves. After a solid four-year stretch of sustained decline in performance at the plate, Springer had a resurgent 4.8 bWAR campaign with a .959 OPS, capped by arguably his best postseason performance since the scandal-scarred 2017 World Series run. His age? 35. In a way, Springer’s season was a nice case study for how a concentrated, full-year adjustment to plate approach and swing strategy could significantly help Semien — if his presser quote about already having a lot of information thrown his way is to be taken at face value, I imagine that process is already underway.
Pessimistically, there’s the case of DJ LeMahieu — a once steady bat whose decline started almost as soon as he entered his 30s. The falloff wasn’t subtle: he went from averaging a .787 OPS through his age-31 season to averaging a .697 OPS from ages 32-36, with just 112 games played in the last two seasons. The biggest difference between LeMahieu and Semien lies in their gloves — though both have suffered significant offensive downturns in recent years, Semien’s defense has never faltered. At the same time, LeMahieu played a merely average second base through 2023 before seeing limited action in the last two seasons.
Multiple reports have come out since this trade suggesting that the Mets should be satisfied to get even 100-level OPS+ production from Semien over the next few years while letting his glove go to work alongside Francisco Lindor. Based on current projections and his career mark of 109, I don’t think that’s a ridiculous thing to hope for, even considering the recent slide.
The Defense
Whatever value Semien’s bat currently lacks, his glove largely makes up the difference. Semien posted a +5 Defensive Runs Saved (DRS) and a +6 Outs Above Average (OAA) in 2025, securing his second career Gold Glove Award in his age-34 season. Per Fangraphs fielder leaderboards, since assuming second base full-time in 2022, Semien grades out as the second-best player at the position in MLB by multiple metrics, ranking only behind former Met Andrés Giménez.
By pairing Semien with Francisco Lindor, the Mets arguably have the most defensively sound middle-infield in the National League, if not all of baseball. Watching Semien’s highlights, I see a player who has explosive lateral quickness and can get to just about any ball hit in his vicinity. As he mentioned in his presser, the move to second base naturally made throwing to first that much easier, and that comfort level shows in how he plays the position. Semien plays a very natural, instinctive second base: he’s quick to the ball, and he’s decisive when he makes a play.
Whether he’s ranging to either side of the bag or chasing down a pop fly into the outfield, Semien covers a ridiculous amount of range. His 81st percentile sprint speed definitely helps with that. There’s honestly an almost anticipatory nature to some of the plays he makes; it’s a real joy to watch.
Basically, the Mets really just need Semien to be a league-average offensive presence, and his glove will take care of the rest. He’s posted at least 1.0 dWAR in all but one of the last eight seasons, and that lone ‘poor’ season was 2020, so it’s all relative. All told, Semien’s a stud in the field, and his presence behind what should be a further fortified pitching staff should show results relatively quickly.
The Clubhouse
Obviously, no one can replace what Brandon Nimmo meant to this franchise. The longest-tenured Met, Nimmo was in the system for 14 years — that’s a unique, signature energy that can’t be replicated, and no one should attempt to.
Rather, all Semien should be expected to do is show up and be himself.
It sounds a bit hippy-dippy, but it’s true: heading into his 14th season and fifth organization, Semien has seen and learned a lot, and played with a lot of different types of ballplayers. As he said himself, his leadership style has evolved, but the thing that’s never changed is how he leads by example. Something that’s been echoed by younger Mets time and time again in recent years is their collective admiration for the way players like Lindor and Soto go about their business.
Considering Stearns’s focus on getting playing time for the up-and-comers, his pursuit of a clubhouse presence like Semien’s isn’t shocking.
A presence like Semien’s has the potential to be stabilizing in many important ways. His arrival shores up the infield for the foreseeable future, presumably lining Baty up for full-time third base duty and providing him with a consistent infield group of vets to build chemistry and rhythm; it also provides an opportunity for an evolution of culture in the clubhouse that has been needed for several seasons now.
The Mets didn’t agree to this deal because they were upgrading their offense; they made it happen because it improved the team in multiple other ways. Granted, it’s a move that has now forced them into a situation where an outfield reinforcement with offensive upside is an absolute necessity, but it was a move that needed to be made.
Which domino will fall next?
This is definitely the best-case, optimistic view. I hope it works out.
I've said it elsewhere, but were Semien even 30 rather than 35, I'd be all-in on this, as hard as it is to see Nimms go after all this time. But at this age ...
But hey, if Marcus comes in and plays a stellar second base and gives us a decent enough showing at the plate and paves the way for the next generation (and to be honest, I would have been fine with either Acuña or Williams getting their shot right now, preferably Luisangel), then it could be all to the good.
In any event, Happy Thanksgiving, my fellow Metsies! 🦃
This deal is say for shadows Pete coming back. Semien’s range keeps Pete at whatever line they draw that he should never cross going for a ball. This also opens up every wish list player any Mets fan can think of in free agency to fill that outfield position opened up with Brandon leaving. The combinations are certainly vast.