Marcus Semien Bio
Marcus Andrew Semien is an American professional baseball shortstop and second baseman for the New York Mets of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Chicago White Sox, Oakland Athletics, Toronto Blue Jays, and Texas Rangers. Semien was an All-Star in 2021 with the Blue Jays, when he also won the Gold Glove Award and Silver Slugger Award. Semien signed a seven-year, $175 million contract with the Rangers following the 2021 season and won the World Series with the team in 2023.
Early Life and Background
Marcus Andrew Semien was born on September 17, 1990, in San Francisco, California. He grew up pitching and playing infield in El Cerrito Youth Baseball, across the bay from San Francisco, and was a member of the area’s All-Star teams. He attended St. Mary’s College High School in Berkeley, California. At St. Mary’s, he hit .471 as a junior, .371 as a senior, and was named all-league three times. Semien was drafted by the Chicago White Sox in the 34th round of the 2008 MLB draft but chose not to sign.
Instead, he enrolled at the University of California, Berkeley, where he played college baseball for the California Golden Bears. After struggling as a freshman, Semien improved as a sophomore, hitting .328. As a junior, Semien was the starting shortstop for the team but hit .275, which hurt his stock for the MLB Draft.
Path to Baseball
The Chicago White Sox drafted Semien in the sixth round, with the 201st overall selection of the 2011 Major League Baseball draft. He started his professional career that year with the Single–A Kannapolis Intimidators, finishing the season hitting .253 in 229 at-bats with 15 doubles, two triples, three home runs, 26 runs batted in (RBIs), and three stolen bases. Semien was moved up to High–A Winston-Salem Dash for the 2012 season, where he hit .273 in 418 at-bats with 31 doubles, five triples, 14 home runs, 59 RBIs, and 11 stolen bases. For the 2013 season, Semien was ranked the White Sox’s #8 prospect.
On September 3, 2013, the White Sox selected Semien’s contract from the Triple-A Charlotte Knights and promoted him to the major leagues for the first time. He debuted against the New York Yankees the next day and recorded his first hit, a single, against CC Sabathia in his first at-bat. He hit his first major league home run against J. A. Happ of the Toronto Blue Jays on September 23. He finished his debut campaign appearing in 21 games and hitting .261 with 2 home runs and 7 RBIs.
Marcus Semien Career
Early Career (2011–2014)
In 2014, Semien played in 64 games for the White Sox, hitting .234/.300/.372 with 6 home runs and 28 RBIs. On December 9, 2014, the White Sox traded Semien, Chris Bassitt, Rangel Ravelo, and Josh Phegley to the Oakland Athletics in exchange for Jeff Samardzija and Michael Ynoa. He began the 2015 season as the team’s starting shortstop. Semien struggled defensively throughout the season, committing a major-league-worst 35 errors, including a major-league-leading 18 throwing errors. He finished the 2015 season with a .257 batting average, 15 home runs, and 11 stolen bases.
After the season, the Athletics hired Ron Washington to work with Semien on his defense. In 2016, Semien committed only 21 errors and led the major leagues in assists, with 477. He showed power at the plate, finishing second on the team in home runs with 27, batting .238 with ten stolen bases.
Breakthrough (2015–2021)
On April 17, 2017, Semien was placed on the 10-day disabled list due to a right wrist fracture, which required surgery. For the 2017 season, he batted .249 with ten home runs and twelve stolen bases. In 2018, he batted .255 with fifteen home runs and fourteen stolen bases. He led the major leagues in assists, with 459, and was one of three finalists for a Gold Glove at shortstop in the American League.
In 2019, Semien batted .285/.369/.522 with 33 home runs and led the major leagues with 747 plate appearances. His performance improvements garnered him attention from postseason awards voters, as he was named to the inaugural All-MLB second team at shortstop and finished third in voting for the American League MVP. In 2020, Semien played 53 games, slashing .223/.305/.374 with seven home runs, nine doubles, and 23 RBIs.
Notable Works and Milestones
On January 30, 2021, Semien signed a one-year, $18 million contract with the Toronto Blue Jays. He was named an All-Star for the first time in his career on July 1, 2021, as the starting second baseman for the American League in the 2021 All-Star Game. On September 29, 2021, Semien hit his 44th home run of the season, breaking Davey Johnson’s MLB record for the most home runs in a season by a primary second baseman. Semien finished the 2021 season hitting .265/.334/.538 with 45 home runs, 102 RBIs, and an MLB-leading 86 extra-base hits.
On December 1, 2021, Semien agreed to a seven-year, $175 million contract with the Texas Rangers. In 2022, he led the major leagues in plate appearances for the second straight year and hit .248/.304/.429 with 26 home runs and 83 RBIs. In 2023, Semien again led the league in plate appearances, batting .276/.348/.478 with a league-leading 122 runs. He set the single-season record for plate appearances, attaining 835 total plate appearances, and became the fifth player in MLB history with at least 100 RBIs in the leadoff spot. Semien won a Silver Slugger award and finished third in AL MVP Voting.
With the Rangers, Semien won the 2023 World Series as the team defeated the Arizona Diamondbacks in five games. On November 24, 2025, the Rangers traded Semien to the New York Mets in exchange for Brandon Nimmo.
Marcus Semien Award Nominations
Throughout his career, Marcus Semien has received several award nominations, including being named an All-Star three times and finishing third in American League MVP voting in 2019.
Marcus Semien Awards Won
Marcus Semien has won multiple awards, including three All-Star selections, a World Series championship in 2023, and two Gold Glove Awards. He has also been recognized as a two-time Silver Slugger Award winner and a two-time All-MLB First Team selection.