The New York Mets were apparently itching to make something happen.
They didn't even wait until Thanksgiving to pull off a rather unexpected, one-for-one trade exchanging veterans with the Texas Rangers.
The Mets sent Brandon Nimmo out of town on Sunday.
In return, they received Marcus Semien.
ESPN assigned the Mets a grade of C+ for the deal.
The grade has more to do with Semien than it does with giving up Nimmo.
"For the Mets, it's important to underscore the fact that Semien is 35 years old," ESPN writes. "Though he challenged for AL MVP during Texas' championship season in 2023, his offensive numbers have since headed south, as tends to happen to middle infielders with his expanding chronology. Over the past two seasons, his bat has been just below league average -- and while there is plenty of value in being roughly average, it's still a precarious baseline for a player on the downside of his career. His offensive forecast isn't as good as that of New York's heretofore presumed regular at second base, Jeff McNeil, who might still get plenty of run at other positions."
The grade also goes on to point out that the Mets have a strong group of infield prospects, and that Semien now will essentially serve as a block to at least one of them.
Semien did just win a Gold Glove, which likely boosts him in the eyes of the Mets, allowing them to use the utility guy McNeil at other spots.
Nimmo was with the Mets his entire career, from when he was the 13th overall pick in the 2011 MLB Draft. So losing him has at least a bit of a sentimental loss to it, even if it doesn't have quite as big of an impact on the field.
More news:
- Florida's 7-foot-9 Olivier Rioux scored his first college point
- J.J. McCarthy had a day so bad it hadn't happened since 2002
- Nation's longest high school winning streak snapped at 76 games
- Thanks to Steven Adams, the Rockets are on pace to break an all-time NBA record
- Shedeur Sanders makes Browns history as he begins to write a story all his own
- Blackhawks' 1st-round pick just led his high school football team to a state title