TORONTO – The Toronto Blue Jays decided to challenge shortstop Arjun Nimmala out of camp last spring by assigning the 2023 first-rounder to low-A Dunedin, despite a mere nine games of pro experience in the Florida Complex League. His age – 18 at the time, 3.1 years younger than the Florida State League average – gave them pause, but he’d really forced their hand with his maturity and the way he played.

Five weeks later, with Nimmala batting .167/.280/.306 and striking out in 34.4 per cent of his at-bats through his first 29 games, the Blue Jays adjusted. First, they moved him to the development list, where he worked on his approach and his swing, and then sent him back to the complex league to test out the adjustments. By the end of June he was back with Dunedin, where he batted .265/.331/.564 with 13 homers while reducing his strikeout rate by five per cent over his final 53 games, demonstrating the power and defensive ability that make him, arguably, the Blue Jays position-player prospect with the highest ceiling since Gabriel Moreno.

“At first, I was a little mad about it because I was like, let me just play,” Nimmala says of the early demotion after his tough start to 2024. “But over time I realized that was probably the best thing that could happen for me.”

The way Nimmala handled the entire experience is why the Blue Jays opted to challenge him once again this spring, promoting him up to high-A Vancouver, where he’s off to a .326/.383/.558 start through 10 games with the Canadians.

There is still lots for him to work on, and now 19, he’s intent on attacking every part of his game. And while there was a case for him to perhaps start in Dunedin and cement his gains while avoiding the early spring cold and rain in the Pacific Northwest, Nimmala was all for the push. 

“Challenge is always best, honestly. I love that we do that in our organization,” he says. “Last year, personally I thought they made the right decision with Dunedin out of the gate. Of course, it was a little bit of a challenge, but that’s kind of the guy I am. I’m never one to back down, whether it’s offensive struggles, defence, anything. 

“I’ll always take the challenge.”

The way he faced his struggles a year ago should only serve him well the next time there are hardships to overcome.

With a late-in-his-age-group Oct. 16 birthday, Nimmala was long used to playing with and against older opponents, but once in pro ball, “not putting up good numbers and not helping the team win” was new to him. 

That’s why during his time on the development list, the work on his approach focused on his “mental game.”

“I’ve always been a mentally strong guy, but I can say that because I’ve never had to deal with failure,” he explains. “A lot of guys don’t deal with failure until they to get to this type of level, so that was the first time. Just understanding that, hey, I’m good, I’m the best player out here, I’m not going to say that to anyone, but that’s my thought, I’m the best player out here, I can hang with anyone. So just knowing I have the ability to play at the highest levels and trusting that ability to play.”

At the same time, Nimmala worked on some subtle changes at the plate, adjusting the set up with his hands to create a quicker and more efficient path to the ball, while also building the muscle memory to get him into his back hip without a conscious thought.

“Small tweaks that ultimately helped me get in a better position to get to my strengths,” he explains. “A lot of it was feel-based, like, what feel helped me do this without having to think about it too much, what allowed me to do what I’m naturally good at without having to overdo it.”

Nimmala demonstrated that while playing in six Grapefruit League games for the Blue Jays, highlighted by the way he turned around a 96.3 m.p.h. fastball from Pirates righty Yohan Ramirez and launched it at 105.6 m.p.h. off the netting beyond the LECOM Park outfield walkway. He also hit a double during a Feb. 28 start at the New York Yankees, while capitalizing on the opportunity to pick the brains of the Blue Jays players around him.

“I’m always a curious guy, like, where are you playing this guy, what’s your approach. There are a lot of different things in the game that as a kid in high school, you don’t really do, like scouting reports or positioning,” he says. “So asking questions about what approaches they have, what their thought process is off the field, defence, offence, all those types of things. That’s something that has always intrigued me. There’s a reason why they’re the best.”

Here’s a look elsewhere around the Blue Jays farm system:

Notables – RHP Jake Bloss; LHP Eric Lauer; RHP Dillon Tate; LHP Josh Walker; INF Orelvis Martinez; OF Jonatan Clase; OF Joey Loperfido

Outlook – Addison Barger and Easton Lucas were the first recalls up to the Blue Jays who are sure to make regular forays into the depth they’ve assembled in Buffalo. Pivotal given the current uncertainty around Max Scherzer and his ongoing thumb issues is the progress of Bloss, who’s allowed 19 runs, 13 earned, with nine walks in 11.1 innings over three starts thus far, and Lauer, who has given up 10 runs in 14 innings across three starts. Tate, Walker and Braydon Fisher are among the bullpen arms on the radar if need arises. Clase (.378/.511/.432) and veteran infielder Michael Stefanic (.324/.405/.378) have paced the Bisons offence early while Martinez, who has the power potential the Blue Jays continue to seek, is off to a dismal .071/.188/.179 opening, after being suspended 80 games last season for violating baseball’s drug program. Notable injuries include shortstops Josh Kasevich and Leo Jimenez, plus starters Adam Macko and Adam Kloffenstein. 

Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats

Notables – 3B Charles McAdoo; OF RJ Schreck; OF Jace Bohrofen; RHP Ryan Jennings

Outlook – McAdoo and Schreck join infielders Yohendrick Pinango, Josh Rivera and Eddinson Paulino, plus catcher Jacob Sharp, in loading up the Fisher Cats with players acquired during last summer’s deadline selloff. McAdoo, who came over from the Pirates for Isiah Kiner-Falefa, is the highest upside member of the group with impressive power potential, but of concern is a strikeout rate of 31.5 per cent at double-A last season. Schreck, the return from Seattle for Justin Turner, is a mature hitter with a strong approach looking to drive the ball more. Bohrofen also has power potential and needs to overcome some swing-and-miss, while Jennings, who struck out 14 over 10 scoreless innings in the Arizona Fall League, has started the season as a multi-inning reliever with 10 strikeouts in six frames.

Advance-A Vancouver Canadians

Notables – SS Arjun Nimmala; LHP Kendry Rojas; RHP Fernando Perez; RHP Juaron Watts-Brown; 2B Adrian Pinto; OF Victor Arias; 3B Sean Keys; 3B Cutter Coffey

Outlook – The Canadians are interesting well beyond Nimmala, with the rotation trio of Rojas, Perez and Watts-Brown potentially bolstering what the Blue Jays hope will be a wave of arms coming in the years ahead. Rojas, now pushing into the mid-90s, may have the highest ceiling of the trio while Perez, who represented the Blue Jays at the Futures Game a year ago when he was just 20, has a maturity to his game that belies his age and gives him the most stable floor. Watts-Brown had a nice finish to the season a year ago and should be pushing toward double-A. Arias, Pinto, Keys and Coffey are toolsy young players looking to cement past gains before jumping forward.

Notables – RHP Trey Yesavage; RHP Khal Stephen; OF Yhoangel Aponte; SS Manuel Beltre; INF Cade Doughty; 3B Tucker Toman; 2B Sam Shaw

Outlook – Stephen, a second-round pick last year, has really hit the ground running in his pro debut with 20 strikeouts, two walks and just one run against in 20 innings over three starts thus far. He, along with last year’s first-rounder Yesavage, who has eight strikeouts in 7.2 innings over two starts, both have a chance to move levels quickly after solid college careers. Aponte, Beltre, Doughty and Toman are all repeating Dunedin, while Shaw, the Victoria native, is debuting at low-A after spending last season in the Florida Complex League.