How Brandon Nimmo’s large payday came together with Mets

The Mets took a chance on Brandon Nimmo as a kid out of Wyoming 11 years ago. By now, the story is well known: High school baseball isn’t offered in Wyoming, forcing Nimmo to play American Legion Baseball, and though he ranked high in his draft class, he was not considered a slam-dunk first-round pick.

Still, the Mets selected the outfielder with the 13th overall pick in the 2011 MLB Draft, making him the highest-drafted player to ever come from Wyoming.

Nimmo still has great respect for the organization that helped him make history. After testing the free agent waters, he knew he wanted to help them make history as well, which is why he chose to return to the Mets and plans to be with the team that drafted him for the rest of his career. Nimmo signed an eight-year, $162 million contract with the Mets last week and the club formally announced the contract Thursday at Citi Field.

“A huge motivator in free agency is, where can I go and compete for a World Series title?” Nimmo said. “And the great part is, I didn’t have to go anywhere.”

While the money sure helped, Steve and Alex Cohen’s commitment to winning and the opportunity to be a Met for life ultimately won over the center fielder. He has a full no-trade clause and some incentives in his contract, but there are no opt-outs. Nimmo’s contract ensures that he will be a Met through his age-37 season.

“To be able to start your career with someone and finish your career with the same team, that’s really, really special,” Nimmo said.

The 29-year-old made it known to the Mets early on in the free agency process that he was interested in returning. Cohen, likewise, told Nimmo that the club would like to work out a deal. On the advice of his agent, Scott Boras, Nimmo continued to explore free agency, meeting with teams on Zoom and at the winter meetings in San Diego last week.

Some of the meetings lasted for hours, with Nimmo wanting to understand the culture of other organizations, their systems, operations and personnel. He had to know how things were done outside of Queens to be able to determine what was best for him.

“Brandon was thorough,” Boras said. “Each meeting would last literally for hours. He would have real discussions. So it was a process where he learned a lot, but he also learned what he liked.”

Meanwhile, Nimmo was paying attention to what was going on in San Diego and seeing how general manager Billy Eppler was filling out the roster. The big names, like Justin Verlander, were impressive but even the role players, like reliever David Robertson, were important.

Above all, Nimmo wanted to know if he would have a chance to play for a World Series and play for one every year. He didn’t want to go to a team that was going big to capitalize on a narrow window or a team in the rebuilding phase.

Having been with the Mets for the entirety of his career, he saw the changes made under Cohen first-hand. Between the moves made to replace free agents this winter, Cohen’s investments in technology and a positive clubhouse culture, Nimmo and his wife, Chelsea, realized that the Mets have everything they value.

After the winter meetings, Nimmo informed Boras that the Mets were his preferred team and the negotiations began with general manager Billy Eppler.

“My negotiating style is if I find a place where a player is comfortable and it’s what they like, then we kind of focus on one club,” Boras said. “And that’s kind of how we worked with the Mets.”

Negotiations moved quickly. The two had a deal in place by Thursday night.

“There was definitely a willingness on both sides,” Nimmo said. “That night, I’m not sure what was so special about that night, but it was right after I got back from San Diego and there was a willingness on both sides to get a deal done.”

It’s easy to see why Nimmo has been a fan favorite since he made his Major League debut in 2016. He has ingrained himself in the fabric of the organization, volunteering at numerous charity events and aiding the PR staff in an attempt to bring positive attention to the team.

His work ethic was always evident. Nimmo had to improve his routes and tracking in the outfield to stay in center field and stay in the lineup. His lineup spot was never guaranteed. Despite his on-base abilities, Nimmo had to continually battle other outfielders for playing time after dealing with various injuries throughout 2019 and 2021.

He put in the work and continues to as well. Manager Buck Showalter often sees him in the batting cages late at night and has to tell him to go home to Chelsea.

The timing of this also has to be considered: Nimmo made his decision less than a week after Jacob deGrom decided to sign with the Texas Rangers. Nimmo’s effusive praise of the Mets and his desire to stay with the team forever is a stark contrast to deGrom’s decision to bolt without much of an explanation.

No longer an unknown out of Wyoming, the Mets did what was needed to retain a player they think is one of the top leadoff hitters in baseball. Now Nimmo wants to repay the team with a World Series title.

“I’m here to try and see it through from start to finish,” Nimmo said.