Why Marcus Semien is most to blame for Mets’ disastrous start to 2026 season

The New York Mets entered 2026 with playoff ambitions, a revamped lineup, and legitimate NL East aspirations. Instead, after 30 games, they have a terrible 10-20 record, are in last place in the NL East, and are a shocking 11.5 games behind the Braves, who are in first place in the division. Juan Soto’s injury history to start the season hasn’t help, and Bo Bichette hasn’t been very good either. But when you look at the whole picture, the cost of the trade, the size of the contract, and the player’s performance on the field, one player stands out as the biggest reason why this Mets team is sinking: Marcus Semien.

Acquired this past offseason in a blockbuster trade that sent beloved outfielder Brandon Nimmo to Texas, Semien arrived in Queens as the centerpiece of New York’s offensive rebuild. He has three years and $72 million still remaining on his seven-year, $175 million contract. That is an astronomical sum for a player who has been, by every measurable standard, one of the worst hitters in baseball so far in 2026.

The Numbers Don’t Lie — Marcus Semien is Historically Bad

Semien has a terrible .566 OPS and is hitting .226/.284/.302 in 30 games. That OPS puts him outside the top 150 qualifying hitters in all of baseball. The Mets are already 29th in runs scored this season with only 102. Their No. 2 hole hitter is hitting less than .600 OPS is an anchor that pulls the whole lineup down.

The .291 slugging percentage is especially bad; Semien has only hit one home run and driven in nine runs in 30 games. The Mets got him hoping to get at least a hint of the player who hit .276/.348/.478 with 29 home runs in 2023. They got a 35-year-old who looks totally lost at the plate instead.

His problems with right-handed pitching have been especially bad. Semien is hitting an embarrassing .195 against righties in 2026 with a .524 OPS, and about 70% of the starters they face throw with their right hand. There is no way to hide these numbers, and there is no platoon solution for second base when the starter is the problem. After the Mets lost to the Dodgers while laying an egg, Semien himself admitted that the team isn’t scoring when it matters most.

The Mets’ 12-game losing streak was the worst part of their 2026 season. It dropped them to 7-19 and put an end to any hope they had at the start of the season. Semien was one of the lineup’s most consistent non-producers during that time, not getting many extra-base hits or runs. The Mets didn’t score any runs in four games and only scored two runs or fewer in ten games during the first part of the season. A second baseman making $24 million a year in the middle of the order should help keep things stable during a losing streak, not just sit back and watch.

The Contract Albatross That Limits New York’s Options

The Mets have no way out of Semien’s problems, which is probably the most worrying thing about them. The front office can’t just bench him or get rid of his contract for a younger player because they still owe him $72 million through 2028. The Mets traded away Nimmo, who had been with the team for his whole career and hit .262 with 25 home runs in 2025. In return, they got a second baseman who is getting old quickly and is now having the worst offensive season of his career. Semien had a .424 OPS in his first seven games with New York, but it has slowly gone up to his current terrible .566.

Semien still has time to turn things around. His career record shows that he can do better. But as of April 30, 2026, no player on the Mets’ roster has done less than what was expected, what they paid, or how important their position was. The Mets will stay at the bottom of the NL East until Semien finds his offensive identity again.

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