The Mets have agreed to re-sign outfielder Brandon Nimmo to an eight-year contract worth $162 million. Joel Sherman of the New York Post was the first to report the signing.

Nimmo is the third free-agent signing the Mets have made this week, joining Justin Verlander and José Quintana. The Wyoming native was the top outfielder on the market after Aaron Judge re-signed with the Yankees and Japanese import Masataka Yoshida signed with the Red Sox.

Nimmo stayed mostly healthy in 2022 and was a mainstay at the top of the Mets’ lineup, playing a career-high 151 games and avoiding trips to the injured list. The 29-year-old hit .274/.367/.433 (130 OPS+) with 16 homers, 30 doubles, 7 triples, 64 RBIs, and a career-best 5.4 rWAR. He also struck out in a career-low 17.2 percent of his at-bats and was one of the team’s more effective hitters against southpaws, turning a 264/.358/.428 batting line against lefties.

Nimmo had a career year defensively too, registering 6 OAA, which ranked in the 90th percentile on Baseball Savant.

Reports emerged earlier in the week that the Mets were considering signing Kevin Kiermaier if they didn’t bring back Nimmo. With Nimmo re-signed, the Mets have filled their biggest hole in the lineup and will be able to keep Starling Marte in right field. After bringing back Nimmo and signing reliever David Robertson, the Mets’ payroll projects at $328 million, but that reportedly doesn’t take them out of the running for Kodai Senga.

The post Mets Sign Brandon Nimmo For 8 Years, $162 Million appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

Early in the season, it seemed that Jeff McNeil had fallen out of the race for the National League batting title. McNeil had a batting average of .208 in July and saw his season average fall from .319 to .294.

The Mets second baseman/outfielder persevered the rest of the season and batted .370 from August 1 to October 2 to raise his batting average to an MLB-leading .326. With a slim margin over Freddie Freeman for the National League batting title entering Tuesday’s doubleheader, McNeil separated himself by going 3-for-8 in the two games and stagnated his average at .326.

The ball didn’t find any outfield grass for Freeman and he went 0-for-4 in the Dodgers game last on Tuesday night against the Colorado Rockies. Freeman is now hitless in his last 12 at-bats and his average has fallen to .322.

With a breathable lead over Freeman for the batting title, Buck Showalter has the option to sit McNeil in the last game of the season.

When asked about the prospect of playing in game 162, McNeil said, “The main goal is to be ready for the playoffs on Friday. If I need a couple of at-bats tomorrow, I’m happy to take some… but I’m not sure of what the plan is (for Sunday’s game).”

There is an outside possibility that Freeman is able to retake the batting average crown in the final game of the 2022 season. If Freeman goes 4-for-4 in the season finale, his average will raise to .327. Luckily for Showalter, every single game starts at 4:10 eastern time on Wednesday. It is a possibility to watch the box score and decide to use McNeil accordingly.

If McNeil’s batting average holds, he will be the second New York Met to win the NL batting title. José Reyes won the first title for the Mets in 2011 when he batted .337 in his walk year. McNeil, however, would be the first Met to ever win the batting title for both leagues. He leads MLB with his .326 average and is far ahead of Luis Arraez‘s American League leading .315 average.

“It’s a little nerve wracking,” McNeil added in Tuesday night’s post game interview with Anthony DiComo when asked about leading MLB in batting average. However, McNeil was also able to have a sense a humor when discussing the award.

“It’s the only award I can look forward to. I’m never going to lead the majors in home runs.”

The post McNeil Holds MLB’s Highest Average Going Into Game 162 appeared first on Metsmerized Online.