Blue Jays Nation’s Mid-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 1: Arjun Nimmala

We’ve got ourselves a new top prospect in the Blue Jays system, as the team’s first-round pick from the 2023 MLB Draft ranks number one.

This is Blue Jays Nation’s annual Mid-Season top prospect list, where we’ll look at the 35 best prospects in the Blue Jays system. We’ll look at the player’s stats, my observations, and other publication’s scouting reports if available.

Let’s take a look at our best prospect, Arjun Nimmala!

Getting to know Arjun Nimmala…

Position: Shortstop

Bats: Right

Born: October 16, 2005

Acquired: 1st-round, 2023 draft (Blue Jays)

Previous ranking: 4

The Blue Jays selected Arjun Nimmala as the 20th overall pick in the 2023 draft. Finishing out the 2023 season in the Florida Complex League, Nimmala slashed .200/.500/.320 with no home runs in 40 plate appearances.

Let’s segment Nimmala’s 2024 season. From the start of the 2024 season until May 12, Nimmala slashed .167/.280/.306 in 125 plate appearances for the Single-A Dunedin Blue Jays, along with a 34.4 K% and a 12 BB%. On May 14, he was assigned to the Florida Complex League.

His tenure in the Rookie League was short but effective, as he slashed .238/.467/.571 with one home run in 30 plate appearances, along with a higher BB% (30%) than K% (23.3%). Upon returning to Single-A, Nimmala slashed .265/.331/.564 with 13 home runs in 236 plate appearances.

Dear New Pitcher,

Welcome to the ballgame.

Sincerely,

Arjun Nimmala

The @BlueJays prospect is now up to 13 homers 🔥 pic.twitter.com/YVmFgdE35A

— Dunedin Blue Jays (@DunedinBlueJays) August 15, 2024

https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

Overall, the 18-year-old finished Single-A slashing .232/.313/.476 with 16 home runs in 361 plate appearances, along with an 8.3 BB% and a 31.3 K%. It’s important to note that he put up those numbers despite being among the youngest players in the league, making them all the more impressive.

Nimmala ranked as MLB Pipeline’s fifth-best prospect in their mid-season update. The power potential is great, and it showed when he was tied with Orelvis Martinez for the third-most home runs in the organization. However, the hit tool lags behind as he has a high strikeout rate and a subpar approach. Defensively, he’ll stick on the left side of the dirt, with shortstop being his position for the foreseeable future.