Brandon Nimmo Returning to Form Right on Time

Brandon Nimmo came up big for the Mets on Sunday, and for him, it was a milestone day. He returned to center field for the first time this spring after spending most of last year in left field. For a player recently dealing with plantar fasciitis and knee soreness, it’s a big step in the right direction.

Nimmo went 3-for-4 on Sunday with a double in the first, a single and a run scored in the fourth, and a triple in the fifth. He was a home run away from hitting for the cycle.

Defensively, Nimmo fielded his first outs in center this spring, coming in the second, fourth, and fifth innings. Nimmo fielded each line drive cleanly and looked to do so with ease.

Coming off today, Nimmo is now batting .333/.429/.542, with a .971 OPS this spring.

After a slow start to spring coming off the plantar fasciitis last season and then the knee soreness this spring, Nimmo is beginning to trend in the right direction. He looks like he could be ready to be in the lineup come Opening Day and play in the field.

Nimmo played only 144 innings in center in 2024, amassing most of his time in left. However, he’s spent most of his career in center, accumulating over 4,000 innings in the position. He posted zero outs above average (OAA) in the outfield in 2024, one out above average in 2023, six OAA in 2022 and four OAA in 2021. Between those four years, Nimmo prevented 10 runs, third-best on the Mets in that period.

Nimmo was initially predicted to only serve as a designated hitter at the end of camp and was not expected to play in the field. However, after playing center again on Sunday and looking good, combined with a strong day at the plate, Nimmo could find himself in the outfield on Opening Day.

It’s a change of pace for the Mets, who now find themselves with another additional outfielder in the mix than initially expected. Nimmo joins Juan Soto, Tyrone Taylor, Jose Siri, Jesse Winker and Starling Marte as the likely outfielders on the Opening Day roster. While Winker and Marte will likely platoon in the DH role, they might find themselves sharing the field as well if Nimmo needs to DH only.

Seeing some of their players get healthy is what the Mets need right now. It’s been a tough spring for the team on the injury front, but with Nimmo looking healthy and other players beginning to show progress in the rehab process as well, the Mets could break camp in a better place than they predicted and could have Nimmo back in the defensive lineup as well.

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