1 specific individual goal Brandon Nimmo should have in 2023

On the list of goals for New York Mets center fielder Brandon Nimmo, “smile more” isn’t there. Now under contract for what could be the rest of his MLB career, Nimmo can focus on helping the Mets win as many games as possible with his unmatched skills.

Nimmo stayed healthy last year, logging over 100 games for only the second time of his career. His OBP did drop but he was productive in other areas. It’s hard to be upset with a guy who scored 102 runs, had 30 doubles, and played good defense. 

If there’s one thing we’d like to see more of from Nimmo this year it has to be the use of his speed. MLB rule changes will benefit him there. Larger bases plus a limit on pickoff attempts will let the happiest man in baseball actually run a little bit more.

Mets outfielder Brandon Nimmo can put his speed to use on the bases this year

It’s actually a bit shocking to see how unprolific a base stealer Nimmo has been. Those of us who haven’t been paying close attention might be surprised to learn he has only 23 in his career. Nimmo has only attempted 37. Last year he only tried 5 times after a season in 2021 when he was successful in 5 out of 9 attempts.

When it comes to base stealing, it’s not all about speed. You need to be able to read pitchers and catchers. Getting a good lead and making the commitment to stealing a base all need to be there.

Nimmo has been an effective leadoff hitter for the Mets because of his ability to get on base. However, with only 3 stolen bases last year in 5 total attempts, Nimmo held himself back. The Mets haven’t been big runners at all throughout his stay with the team. It’s something we should expect them to do a little bit more of in 2023 with Nimmo making the biggest change. 

Pete Alonso attempted to steal 6 times last year and swiped 5. Your first base slugger shouldn’t have more steals than your quick outfielder who bats first. Heck, even James McCann was 3 for 3 in stolen bases attempts. Something is wrong with this picture.

Francisco Lindor and Starling Marte are the two other obvious candidates to see their stolen base numbers increase under these new rules. Lindor had 16 with Marte ending the year at 18. Joined by Nimmo, all three should have a goal to run a little more.