Yankees could steal key free agent away from Mets?

Mar 14, 2022; Tampa, FL, USA; New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman talks with media during spring training workouts at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Though not quite on par with firing a shard of broken lumber at Mike Piazza or hitting a pop-up to Luis Castillo, the New York Yankees could be punking their crosstown rivals once again this offseason.

New York Mets writer Michael Mayer reported on Tuesday that, though the Mets feel good about their chances of retaining outfielder Brandon Nimmo, the Yankees have internally discussed the idea of signing Nimmo.

Jim Bowden of The Athletic had also recently mentioned the 29-year-old Nimmo as a possibility for the Yankees in a recent article.

Nimmo, a lefty who hit .274 with 16 home runs and 64 RBIs this season, has been a homegrown, lifelong Met. He was a first-round draft selection by the team in 2011 and made his MLB debut for the Mets in 2016. Nimmo is now set to become a free agent though and may be looking for a large contract after making a total of just $14.4 million over his career thus far.

The Yankees will obviously be looking to re-sign AL MVP frontrunner Aaron Judge this winter. But Nimmo could be a good get for them regardless as an upgrade (at least offensively) in center field over Harrison Bader and Aaron Hicks. Nimmo might even potentially become the Yankees’ everyday left fielder, depending on the health of Andrew Benintendi. He also has somewhat of an interesting history playing at Yankee Stadium.