Brandon Nimmo. Gregory Fisher-USA TODAY Sports
He may not get as much attention as some of there other players at his position, but it is difficult to find many center fielders as consistent as Brandon Nimmo. The 30-year-old signed an eight-year, $162 million deal in the offseason, one that is set to keep him in the blue and orange till 2030. While this season has been a difficult one for the New York Mets as a whole, it is certainly a breath of fresh air to see one of their most important players shining for a second-consecutive season.
In Saturday’s 7-5 loss against the Philadelphia Phillies, it was Nimmo who put the team within striking distance in the later stages of the game. The Mets entered the seventh inning trailing 6-2, but back-to-back base hits from Brett Baty and Mark Vientos put some pressure on Zack Wheeler. Two batters later, Nimmo drove an 0-2 to pitch over the head of Johan Rojas in center field. The ball was misplayed and got all the way to wall, allowing Baty and Vientos to score off Nimmo’s sixth triple of the season.
Nimmo has had much more success in the All-Star break, slashing .279/.356/.500 (.865 OPS) with 11 home runs and 25 RBIs. He is on an even better run in the month of September, hitting .333 with am 1.027 OPS, five home runs and 11 RBIs across 99 plate appearances. Not to mention, he is currently riding a seven-game hit streak (12-for-31, .387 average) and has tallied at least one hit in 22 of his last 24 games.
Nimmo played a career-high 151 games in last year. With just over a week left in the 2023 season, the leadoff man sits at 149 games played. His durability has been outstanding over the last 24 months, something he struggled with earlier in his career.
If the Mets want to achieve anything in 2024, Nimmo needs to play impactful with his bat and his glove. All the signs from this season indicate that he is more than capable of doing that. It has become clear that when Nimmo is able to remain on the field, he is one of the best players at his position, across all of baseball.
