ARLINGTON — The reign of the Rangers’ Iron Man has come to an end.
The Mets and Rangers are working on a one-for-one blockbuster trade that would send outfielder Brandon Nimmo to Texas and second baseman Marcus Semien to New York, according to sources. The teams have not confirmed the trade.
Nimmo, who signed his eight-year contract before the 2023 season, has already agreed to waive his full no-trade clause, according to a source. He has $102.5 million remaining on that deal, and according to MLB Network Insider Jon Heyman, the Mets are sending $5 to Texas to offset the transaction.
Semien, who signed a seven-year, $175 million contract with the Rangers in December 2021, does not have a no-trade clause. He has $72 million remaining on that deal.
Semien and shortstop Corey Seager joined the Rangers going into the 2022 season and together led the club to the first World Series title in franchise history. But not much has gone right since then.
The 35-year-old Semien is coming off a disappointing year at the plate as he batted .230 with a .669 OPS through 127 games. His 15 home runs were his fewest in a non-shortened season since 2018. However, Semien’s defense remained strong, highlighted by a +7 outs above average, placing him in the 92nd percentile in MLB. He also earned his second Gold Glove.
Semien was an All-Star in 2023-24, but hasn’t been able to regain his form over the last year and a half as the Rangers offense has struggled following the 2023 World Series.
At the moment, the Rangers still have utilitymen Josh Smith, Ezequiel Duran and Sam Haggerty on the roster to fill the void at second base. Smith won a Silver Slugger Award at the utility position in 2024.
The Rangers also have Cody Freeman, who played 36 games as a rookie in 2025, available to play multiple infield positions if necessary.
Nimmo, who was a first-round Draft pick by the Mets in 2011 and has spent his entire 10-year MLB career with the club, set personal bests with 25 home runs, 92 RBIs and a 50.2% hard-hit rate in 2025, his age-32 season. He would join a Rangers team ranked 25th in wRC+ (92), 26th in slugging (.381) and 22nd in runs (684) this past season.
Texas has a pair of young potential stars Wyatt Langford and Evan Carter, but the depth thins out afterward with utilitymen like Smith, Duran and Haggerty, as well as rookie Alejandro Osuna.
