Brandon Nimmo may be closing in on end of Mets tenure amid playoff debut
Brandon Nimmo batted leadoff and played center field Friday night, where he has been all season for the Mets.
Nimmo soaked in the energy of the wild-card round at Citi Field, where he has played since making his major league debut in 2016.
A Mets cap was atop his head, where one has resided since Nimmo was made the No. 13 overall pick in the 2011 draft.
As the playoffs kicked off, so did a countdown for the impending free agents such as Nimmo. He said he had not yet begun to process the fact that as soon as Saturday, he could be wearing a Mets hat for the final time.
“I haven’t really thought about the finality of the end yet,” Nimmo said before the Mets lost to the Padres, 7-1, in Game 1. “I guess that gives even more reason to try and not make these [games] the last ones.
“I’d like to win the last one — that would be good to be the last team standing.”
For the Mets to come back and eventually win the World Series, they likely would need major contributions from the likes of Nimmo, who has elevated his free-agency value by proving himself in various facets of his game.
Entering the season, the biggest question about the 29-year-old was whether he could stay healthy, since he had played 100 or more games just once in his career, in 2018. Nimmo played in 151 games this season.
A big question about Nimmo was whether he could be more than just an average center fielder. The only National League center fielders who graded better this season, by Outs Above Average, were San Diego’s Trent Grisham, Arizona’s Daulton Varsho and Atlanta’s Michael Harris II.
Nimmo already had proven he could hit lefty pitchers, a prior weakness in his game. Through years of his development as a Met, he has ironed out flaws and will be hitting the open market fresh off a season with an .800 OPS.
“I’ve had great memories here this year,” said Nimmo, who tripled as part of a 1-for-4 playoff debut. “And however it works out, I’ll think fondly of this place.”
Nimmo has told The Post’s Mike Puma that the Mets reached out during the All-Star break to tell him they are interested in a long-term pact, but negotiations won’t start until the offseason.
Until then, he could raise his value a bit more by proving himself in the postseason.
As a rookie in 2016, Nimmo was left off the Mets’ playoff roster. Friday was his first taste of true October baseball, and he knew immediately something was different: A typical 20- or 25-minute ride to Citi Field took an hour and 15 minutes.
It was the postseason debuts for longtime teammates Pete Alonso and Jeff McNeil as well. Nimmo was the first to arrive, but the homegrown trio has been together in the majors since 2018.
“Pete and Jeff, amazing players, All-Stars, batting champion, Home Run [Derby champion], there’s all these accolades to go along with them,” Nimmo said. “I’ve enjoyed being with them for this process. It’s been a long time coming. We’ve had a lot of hard work to get to the point.”