Over the weekend, the New York Mets moved Brandon Nimmo to the Texas Rangers for Marcus Semien. The trade, while confusing in nature, essentially allowed the Mets to trade what they considered a bad long-term contract for a worse short-term deal. Steve Cohen can afford it, after all.
Nimmo and Semien are both, on the surface, declining players on bad contracts. The Mets acquired Semien, who can fill a middle infield void, and got rid of Nimmo, who was part of an outfield logjam. However, this now means the Mets can acquire a corner outfield bat, which could change the free-agent market altogether.
Are the Mets in the market for an outfield bat?
If the Mets aren't shopping for an outfield bat, they probably should be. As of this writing, Jeff McNeil is slotted as New York's starting center fielder AND left fielder, with Tyrone Taylor behind him at both positions. McNeil has also been floated in trade talks this winter as well, and was the Mets starting second baseman before they acquired Semien.
By dumping Nimmo, the Mets have a good excuse to chase a corner outfielder in the free-agent market. The best players available at the position are, inarguably, Kyle Tucker and Cody Bellinger. The market drops off some after those two, which is great news for Casey Close and Scott Boras, the respective agents for both players. Below are the top-10 outfielders available (designated hitters not included) ranked by their expected average annual value, per Spotrac.
Outfielder | Expected AAV |
|---|---|
Kyle Tucker | $40,179,471 |
Cody Bellinger | $30,449,698 |
Adolis Garcia | $12,708,985 |
Mike Yastrzemski | $11,308,059 |
Harrison Bader | $10,043,882 |
Starling Marte | $7,783,563 |
Max Kepler | $7,593,600 |
Cedric Millins | $6,732,960 |
Tommy Pham | $6,728,516 |
Michael Conforto | $6,676,686 |
Kyle Tucker, Cody Bellinger market just went way up thanks to Mets
The Mets should have plenty of competition for Kyle Tucker, with the likes of the Yankees, Dodgers and Cubs all interested. What New York has that even the Dodgers can't offer is Cohen's check book, and now that Nimmo isn't clogging up the corner outfield grass at Citi Field any more, it makes all the sense in the world to run to Tucker.
New York had interest in Bellinger from the beginning, respecting his positional flexibility and ability to compete at the highest level in New York. As many athletes will understand, that's easier said than done. Bellinger could play in either corner outfield spot – or even center – and fill Pete Alonso's shoes at first base if they're unable to sign him. MLB.com's Mark Feinsand agreed with that assessment.
"Trading Nimmo certainly creates a vacancy in the Mets’ outfield, and given that the widespread belief was that they were already planning on making a push for Tucker and/or Bellinger, this deal makes it all but certain that they will try to sign one of those two outfielders. For Tucker and Bellinger, having the big-budget Mets involved in any potential bidding war has to be viewed as a positive," Feinsand wrote after the Nimmo trade.
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What about the rest of the outfield market?
While there's a significant dropoff after Bellinger and Tucker, it's worth highlighting a few players who could benefit from the market moving quickly. Once those two stars sign, the floodgates should open.
Mike Yastrzemski
Yaz isn't exactly an elite defensive player, but he can hold his own at the corners. Should the Mets or another contender miss out on Bellinger and Tucker, they ought to give Yastrzemski a serious look. He's coming off one of the best seasons of his career – a modest 2.8 bWAR and .735 OPS, which is actually lower than his career number in that department – and at 34 years old can be had on the kind of short-term contract front offices love.
Harrison Bader
Bader definitely had the best season of his career in 2025, especially from the plate. With both the Twins and Phillies, Bader combined for a 3.9 bWAR and .796 OPS. He had a 117 OPS+. Bader is also a former gold glove winner and can play a reliable center field. Once Bellinger and Tucker are gone, expect teams to act quickly on Bader to see once and for all whether his 2025 season was a fluke or the new normal.
Best of the rest
And...that's really it! Adolis Garcia has some promise, but has finished the last two seasons with an OPS under .700. He's also a few years removed from making an All-Star team. Trent Grisham would've been an attractive target, but he accepted his qualifying offer. Starling Marte, Max Kepler, Cedric Mullins and Tommy Pham are...fine, I guess?
This is why clearing up their outfield – and some long-term money in the process – was so important for the Mets, and why the rest of baseball ought to be ready for a bidding war.