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Free-agent outfielder Brandon Nimmo is staying in New York after agreeing to terms on an eight-year, $162 million with the Mets, according to the New York Post’s Joel Sherman.
Nimmo, a first-round pick by New York in 2011, opted to return to the Mets after reportedly garnering interest from several teams, including the Yankees, Rays and Mariners. The 29-year-old entered the offseason ranked 10th on SI’s list of Top 50 free agents.
Drafted No. 13 overall 11 years ago, Nimmo, who turns 30 in March, has thrived when healthy since making his MLB debut in ’16. The ’22 campaign marked the first time he’s played more than 100 games (151) since ’18, and proved to be one of Nimmo’s best statistical seasons to date.
Nimmo slashed .274/.367/.433 with 16 home runs, a 130 OPS+ and career-best 64 RBIs in 580 at-bats while serving as the spark plug atop New York’s lineup. For his career, Nimmo has appeared in 608 games for the Mets and batted .269/.385/.441 with 63 homers and 213 RBIs.
Re-signing Nimmo checks off another box for the Mets as the club looks to re-tool after a 101–61 season that ended in disappointing fashion against the Padres in the NL wild-card series. And the deal wasn’t the only one New York made Thursday in an effort to further bolster its roster in the wake of landing Justin Verlander earlier this week.
The Mets also struck another important deal on Thursday with the addition of veteran reliever David Robertson on a one-year, $10 million deal, per ESPN’s Jeff Passan. The two moves increases the team’s projected Opening Day payroll to $333 million, per Spotrac, which would amount to a $65 million luxury tax bill and a $398 total post-tax payroll—both MLB records.
You can’t say Mets owner Steve Cohen isn’t trying to improve the team.
