Toronto Blue Jays Prospects Arjun Nimmala, Trey Yesavage Earn More High Praise

In the wake of MLB Pipeline and Baseball America's releasing their rankings, the Athletic's Keith Law highlighted the Toronto Blue Jays' farm system by including Arjun Nimmala and Trey Yesavage in his own Top 100.

Aug 28, 2022; Phoenix, Arizona, US; East infielder Arjun Nimmala (22) during the Perfect Game All-American Classic high school baseball game at Chase Field. / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

We are officially in the thick of preseason ranking season, with MLB Pipeline, Baseball America all releasing their lists of the top prospects in the sport this month.

Baseball America's list featured just one Toronto Blue Jays player in left-hander Ricky Tiedemann at No. 100. MLB Pipeline, on the other hand, had two: shortstop Arjun Nimmala at No. 87 and right-handed pitcher Trey Yesavage at No. 88. Baseball Prospectus did not highlight any Blue Jays in their Top 101, although Nimmala was among the outlet's final cuts.

The Athletic's Keith Law revealed his own Top 100 on Monday, leaning closer to MLB Pipeline when it came to Blue Jays prospects.

Law had Nimmala slotted in at No. 71, followed by Yesavage at No. 96. He did not rank Tiedemann or any other members of Toronto's farm system.

While he hasn't been part of an MLB front office in nearly 20 years, Law was a Consultant to Baseball Operations and Special Assistant to the GM with the Blue Jays from 2002 to 2006.

Law is marginally higher on Nimmala than any other high-profile talent evaluator in mainstream media. He has Nimmala ranked as the No. 17 shortstop prospect in baseball, while MLB Pipeline has him at No. 22.

Nimmala was the Blue Jays' first round pick in 2023. Despite hitting just .230 through 98 career minor league games, Nimmala has managed to rack up 17 home runs, 21 doubles, 50 RBI and 10 stolen bases with an .812 OPS.

Law sees Nimmala as a 30-homer bat, although the 19-year-old isn't expected to reach the big leagues until 2028.

As for Yesavage, Toronto took him in the first round of the 2024 MLB Draft. Although he did not pitch professionally last summer, Yesavage went 18-2 with a 2.29 ERA, 0.927 WHIP and 13.3 strikeouts per nine innings across his final two seasons at East Carolina University.

The 21-year-old righty projects as a No. 3 starter, per Law, and he could reach the majors as soon as 2026.

The Blue Jays' future is up in the air at the moment, with Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Bo Bichette and Chris Bassitt all slated to hit free agency next winter, followed by Kevin Gausman, George Springer, Alejandro Kirk and Daulton Varsho the offseason after that. If any combination of those All-Stars walks out the door, even more pressure will be placed on Nimmala, Yesavage and Tiedemann to step up and contribute once they are deemed big-league ready.

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