Toronto Blue Jays manager John Schneider to give extended big-league reps to Arjun Nimmala during WBC
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Top prospect Arjun Nimmala is set to gain valuable experience with the Toronto Blue Jays during this year’s World Baseball Classic, according to manager John Schneider.
Arjun Nimmala spent the entire 2025 campaign with the single-A Vancouver Canadians, appearing in 120 games for the Toronto Blue Jays minor-league affiliate.
Now 20, the shortstop is in big-league camp this spring, working alongside major leaguers as he continues to refine his game on both sides of the ball.
Toronto selected Nimmala 20th overall in the 2023 MLB Draft out of Strawberry Crest High School in Dover, Fla.
He made his professional debut that summer in Rookie Ball with the Florida Complex League Blue Jays.
In 2024, he divided his time between the FCL club and the single-A Dunedin Blue Jays before earning a full-season assignment with Vancouver last year.
Nimmala finished 2025 with a .224 batting average, 13 home runs, 61 RBIs and 17 stolen bases.
His season began in impressive fashion — over his first 40 games, he hit .286 with nine home runs and 24 RBIs — before cooling off later in the year.
Still, the milestone that resonated most with him was durability: the 120 games marked the heaviest workload of his young career.
Arjun Nimmala - the youngest qualified hitter in the Northwest League - is at it again. His 10th of the season. His OPS now sits at .858
Blue Jays giving Nimmala an extended opportunity to hone his skills against big league pitching during WBC
Schneider said Wednesday that the organization plans to give Nimmala extended action this spring, maximizing his exposure to big-league competition.
“He has his goals, physical goals, to keep his physicality throughout the whole season,” said Schneider. “I want him to be around the speed of the game. Every time he’s been with us, we’ve been impressed with his baseball IQ, with his game clock.
“I think he’ll be touching base with our hitting coaches that are here with (David Popkins) and (Lou Iannotti) and (Cody Atkinson), and formulating a plan for him this year and what to stick with.”
The upcoming World Baseball Classic — the international showcase running March 5–17 — should offer Nimmala an even greater opportunity than a typical spring training.
With much of Toronto’s projected infield expected to participate in the tournament, Nimmala is in line for significant playing time in Grapefruit League action.
“He’s going to get a lot of runway in camp to play quite a bit, and that’s really, really good to play against some higher competition,” said Schneider. “Since we signed him, I’ve been impressed with his demeanour, for a young kid, I’ve been impressed with his maturity. “I want to see that play out in games.”
Power remains Nimmala’s standout tool, graded at 60 by MLB Pipeline.
While there is some concern about swing-and-miss tendencies against off-speed pitches, his declining strikeout rate is an encouraging sign of development.
His hit tool still trails his raw power, but evaluators believe he has the defensive ability to remain at shortstop, backed by a 60-grade arm and 50-grade fielding.
With a clear development strategy taking shape, Schneider and the Blue Jays appear intent on ensuring Nimmala makes the most of both his spring training opportunity and formulating a plan for his minor league season.
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| POLL | ||
FEVRIER 19|114 ANSWERS Toronto Blue Jays manager John Schneider to give extended big-league reps to Arjun Nimmala during WBC Har far up the Blue Jays farm system will Arjun Nimmala go in 2026? | ||
| Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats | 14 | 12.3 % |
| Triple-A Buffalo Bisons | 77 | 67.5 % |
| MLB Debut | 23 | 20.2 % |
| List of polls | ||