4 Marcus Semien stats for NY Mets fans to feast on (but 2 to leave off the table)

As the holiday season approaches, the New York Mets are one of the first teams to make waves this offseason, with Brandon Nimmo shipped off to the Texas Rangers in exchange for Marcus Semien. Reactions from Mets fans have been strong, meaning the trade will undoubtedly be a topic of discussion at Thanksgiving tables across the tri-state area. When your family disagrees with you this year, here are some Semien stats to help you defend your opinion on the trade, no matter what side you take.

Two Marcus Semien stats to make Mets fans hungry

OAA

One of the sweet parts of this bittersweet trade is that swapping Nimmo's contract for Semien's allows more flexibility for a young, talented player in the outfield while simultaneously improving the team's infield defense. Since the start of the 2024 season, Semien is tied for fifth in the majors in OAA amongst infielders with 25. To put that into perspective, all Mets second basemen since the start of 2024 combine for an OAA of five. Yes, his numbers were down this year (His OAA was 7—still very good!), but let's not forget that he missed 35 games due to injury. Plus, he still won a Gold Glove.

wxOBA

If there's one thing that's for sure, Semien does not have the MVP-caliber bat that carried the Rangers to a World Series title in 2023. Over the past two seasons, Semien has struggled mightily at the plate, slashing just .234/.307/.379 in that timeframe. However, his 2025 xwOBA of .318, compared with his wOBA of .295, suggests that Semien was partially a victim of bad luck.

Again, he's not the hitter he used to be, but if the Mets can get a league-average bat out of Marcus Semien while enjoying the fruits of his defensive prowess, then they should see that as a win.

On a semi-related note, his home vs. away wOBA should be taken into account:

Two Semien stats we might want to feed the dog

wRC+

As aforementioned, Semien's bat isn't quite what it used to be. We can sugarcoat it with expected stats all we want, but it's time to face the facts: Semien has a wRC+ of just 98 since the start of 2024. He went from finishing third in AL MVP voting just a year before to going "cold turkey," barely able to keep his bat league average. Sure, he's entering his age-35 season, and he missed a solid chunk of time in 2025 due to injury, but there's a reason why the Rangers were willing to take on Nimmo's contract in exchange for him.

This shouldn't be a surprise to anyone, though. Semien has always been one of the most inconsistent hitters in baseball. Despite three MVP-caliber seasons at the plate, he has struggled to produce a wRC+ above league average in any other season of his 13-year MLB career. The A's, Blue Jays, and Rangers may have been able to squeak out elite seasons from Semien's bat, but barring a shock, the Mets should consider themselves lucky he's still a 15+ home run bat if nothing else.

BRV

After using xwOBA to show how Semien might be unlucky earlier, here's a rebuttal. His batting run value was at just -8 this season, good for just the 16th percentile in the league per Baseball Savant. In 2024, another bad year at the plate for Semien, his batting run value was zero, putting him at the 42nd percentile. This means that not only is Semien below league average at the plate, as evidenced by his wRC+, but he has also gotten worse since that dip; he's one of the worst-qualified hitters in baseball.

The positive side is that the Mets didn't bring him in for his bat. They were fifth in MLB in wRC+ last season, and they'll look to improve upon that by finding an appropriate replacement for Brandon Nimmo. If anything, Semien will end up an eight or nine-hole batter, but before we can say that for sure, David Stearns needs to execute his plan properly. Semien is a nice appetizer, but let's hope there's more to the feast.