Mets Change Course At Second Base, Hope For Semien Comeback

The New York Mets are nothing if not inconsistent, and that includes their plans at second base for 2027. GM David Stearns said after the season that Semien would not be guaranteed a job for next year after his disappointing season, but apparently something has changed, according to a report from Anthony DiComo of MLB.com. 

“It’s not a specific position we are looking to add to right now,” Stearns said this week at the GM meetings. 

This is at least slightly baffling. According to DiComo, Semien ranked 134th out of 135 qualified hitters in OPS (.620), 131st in on-base percentage (.280) and 132nd in slugging (.340). 

This isn’t new, either. Since the start of 2025, the writer added 118 players have accumulated at least 1,000 plate appearances. Among that group, Semien ranks 117th in OPS (.644).

Semien’s defensive decline makes all of this much worse. He was supposed to be part of the Mets’ plan to focus on run prevention, but he went from being a Gold Glove winner to a subpar defender, per DiComo. Semien has now declined in nearly every aspect of his game, and he’s 36-years old. 

Stearns described the second baseman as “extremely motivated” to make a comeback, but the big thing to remember here is that he still has two years and $46 million on his deal. That’s an untradeable contract, and for all the self-indulgent, profligate spending engaged in by owner Steve Cohen, the Mets have been reluctant to eat money even when it’s obvious they need to do that to improve. They'd rather give at-bats and playing time to players like Semien, which is how they wound up in last place in the NL East this season. 

DiComo mentioned Brett Baty as one reason the Mets are content to stand pat, and while there is some logic there, it’s not exactly comforting. Semien and Baty could be used together as a platoon, but Baty also struggled mightily this year, although he did seem to find himself toward the end of the season. 

The best-case scenario for Mets fans might be Jefferson Rojas, who was described by DiComo as the “crown jewel” of the Mets farm system. Rojas could be in play at second by midseason after the Mets acquired him in the Clay Holmes trade at the deadline, and prospect Mitch Voit could also be in play as a possibility soon. 

Stearns talked a lot about having competition at second, and he said Semien would have to perform and earn a job. Walking that back is extremely disappointing and it will leave Mets fans once again shaking their heads as they wonder when their team is going to get it right.