C’s Chat – 2025 Vancouver Canadians SS #18 Arjun Nimmala

Stepping into the batter’s box for this edition of C’s Chat is 2025 Vancouver Canadians shortstop Arjun Nimmala.

Born in Tampa, Florida, Nimmala inherited his athletic genes from his parents. His father Balu played cricket and basketball along with track and field while his mother Neeru played hoops and volleyball in Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, India. Arjun would be exposed to cricket during many visits to India as a youngster, but cricket, basketball and soccer would give way to baseball.

Nimmala was on the radar of Florida State University early on as he committed to being a Seminole during his freshman year at Strawberry Crest High School in Dover. Over his four seasons with the Chargers, Nimmala helped them to win back-to-back District titles in 2021 and 2022. He punctuated his high school career in 2023 by hitting .479/.573/.904 for a 1.477 on-base-plus slugging percentage with six home runs and 29 runs batted in over 25 games. Nimmala was named the Florida Gatorade Player of the Year and received the Wade Boggs Athletic Achievement Award in recognition of his “exemplary athletic, academic, and community service achievements” in Hillsborough County.

MLB Pipeline rated Nimmala as the 11th-best prospect for the 2023 Draft while Baseball America ranked him 17th. He would be taken by the Toronto Blue Jays with the 20th selection. Brandon Bishoff was credited with scouting Nimmala, who received a $3,000,000 signing bonus.

Nimmala’s pro debut came with the Florida Complex League Blue Jays in August and showed a really good eye at the plate by drawing 14 walks in his nine games, leaving him with an on-base percentage of .500 in his 40 plate appearances.

The spotlight really shone on Nimmala when he was featured in a documentary, “Indian Baseball Dreams,” which was released in the fall of 2023 and aired on MLB Network in 2024.

The 2024 season would be one of highs and lows for Nimmala. The highs began in his Grapefruit League debut when he drew a walk in his first professional plate appearance and followed that up with a home run off former Blue Jay Brian Moran in his next trip to the dish against Atlanta on March 20. He would get one more at-bat against Baltimore and worked the count to ball four against Baltimore on March 23 to give him a tidy 5.000 OPS for the spring.

Assigned to Low-A Dunedin for his first full season of professional baseball, Nimmala went 4-for-12 with a home run, three RBI and a stolen base in the first three games of the year against Lakeland. However, an ominous sign was six strikeouts against one walk in those three contests and he hit just .171 for the month of April.

Another home run for Nimmala came on May 2 with a two-run shot, along with a double against Tampa. Other highlights were a double and three walks versus Tampa on May 5 and a two-run dinger and single at Fort Myers on May 12. However, a total of 43 strikeouts in 29 games were cause for concern and the Blue Jays decided to give Nimmala a reset by assigning him to the Development List on May 14.

It was in early June when Nimmala got back on the field with the FCL Jays. Things began to click when he homered and tripled against the FCL Yankees on June 22. After an eight-game stint at the Complex, Nimmala returned to Dunedin to finish up the season strong. He announced his return to the Florida State League with a home run in his first game back at Lakeland on June 27 and ran off a seven-game hitting streak.

After slugging .568 in 22 games in July, Nimmala really caught fire in August. He finished a triple short of the cycle with three runs batted in twice at Daytona on August 1 and at Bradenton on August 14 along with a four-hit effort at Clearwater on August 20. A batting line of .296/.330/.541 with seven doubles, a triple, five home runs, 17 RBI and two stolen bases resulted in Nimmala winning the Florida State League Player of the Month for August. In 82 games with the D-Jays, he slugged 16 home runs and finished with a slugging percentage of .476.

The 2025 season saw Nimmala homer again in Spring Training, taking Pittsburgh Pirates reliever Yohan Ramírez deep at Bradenton on March 5. There was a school of thought among seasoned observers that he would be back in Dunedin to start the year. However, the Blue Jays would challenge Nimmala with an assignment to High-A Vancouver instead. So far, he has met that challenge by starting the year with a 11-game on-base streak that included 10 straight with a base hit. Nimmala really enjoyed hitting at Funko Field in Everett by homering in three straight games on April 25, April 26 and April 27, ending the month with a .294/.362/.541 batting line along with six doubles, five homers and 12 RBI.

The momentum for Nimmala continued into May, which included Northwest League Player of the Week plaudits for May 19-25. He batted .360 with a double, a triple, two homers, six RBI and two stolen bases in six games at Eugene. Nimmala and the C’s returned home on May 27 to wear their South Asian Heritage jerseys and he commemorated the occasion with a three-hit night, including a double, in a big win over Hillsboro. Nimmala slashed .284/.381/.516 with 13 extra-base hits, four of them homers in May. Heading into early June, Nimmala is on a 15-game on-base streak.

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C’s Plus Baseball spoke with the 19-year-old Nimmala during the team’s homestand against Hillsboro in late May. This interview has been edited for clarity.

C’s Plus Baseball – You won the Northwest League Player of the Week. How did you find out about it and how did you feel when you found out?

Arjun Nimmala – I kind of found out about it from a couple of friends texting me. I didn’t really see it and they were like ‘Congrats bro, I’m proud of you.’  And I was like, ‘What could they be talking about?’ And I opened it up and it says Player of the Week and I was like, ‘Wow, this is super cool.’ I thought we had a little tough stretch going but we broke out in a really good way and I think we’re in a good spot as a team, putting up a lot of good runs, pitching staff’s been great and, you know, the Player of the Week is just a little accomplishment from that week but you keep going forward.

CPB – What was the key to your success that week in Eugene?

AN – I think it’s the same thing that we’ve been doing all season long. You know, I think the at-bats have been very, very crucial. Every at-bat is important and that’s the mindset I’ve been having in the box. Trying to execute my approach and my plan. I think I did a very good job of that, not only last week, but I think, you know,  overall in the season. Of course, we can keep getting better and keep winning, but I think I just was in a good spot last week, and we’re going to keep carrying that forward.

CPB – Certainly the one thing looking at your stats this year, you’ve really cut down on the strikeouts.  Is there anything you can say about your approach right now in making more contact and hitting a few out?

AN – Yeah, I think the biggest goal this year was to keep that power while also cutting down some of the swing-and-miss strikeouts. But, you know, I’ve always believed that I was a good hitter. I don’t think that was ever going to be a problem, and I think that’s showing this year as well. I think just swinging at better pitches and doing damage on the pitches that I’m getting. I think just being an overall better hitter and having a better understanding of what I’m trying to do at the plate and what the pitcher’s trying to do. He’s trying to get me out. What is he going to do? All these things. Just becoming a more complete hitter has definitely helped me a lot.

CPB – I’ve heard some of the tweaks that you made. It was kind of described you’re kind of like a “feel hitter” but you’re trying to kind of take that out of the equation. What kind of mechanical changes did you make with your swing?

AN – Yeah, I remember, you know, going on the Development List last year. The main reason was I wasn’t able to get to pitches consistently. I was a little long and really couldn’t be super consistent up at the plate. I think the biggest mechanical change was just getting myself in a better position to be more consistent at bat-to-ball. As quick as I can and as quick and powerful as I can to get to the ball. That’s what we worked on while also improving, you know just seeing pitches things like that and it helped a lot going back.

CPB – That’s also to do with the positioning of your hands, trying to get to the ball quicker and a quicker bat path?

AN – Yeah, I was definitely a lot higher last year when in the early season, my hands were a lot higher so it does take a little bit more time to, you know, get to the ball from that spot. So I dropped them a little bit and kept them a little closer and just allowed myself to naturally do what I do good anyways.

CPB – The Development Complex with all the tools, the bells and whistles. I’ve heard of the Trajekt machine. What was the key to getting you back on track as far as the technology that was used? What really helped you out the most?

AN – I think everything helped, you know? First of all, I thought it was a really good reset for the for the brain, for the mindset. I think I’ve always been very confident in my skill set since day one and just having that reset to really think about how good I actually am and what I can do on the baseball field definitely helped. But utilizing those tools like the Trajekt to see more pitching, to see (arm) angles, things like that, to recognize pitches. Just using those and the coaches around me definitely helped a lot.

CPB – I’ve heard that Trajekt can simulate major league pitchers. I don’t know if you can tell me what pitchers were used on this machine, but obviously, they are big league calibre?

AN – Yeah, a lot of big league pitchers, you know. Lefties, righties. I faced a lot of Gerrit Cole, that’s for sure. I faced Clayton Kershaw. I faced a bunch of guys. Anyone that I wanted to face that day, whether it be a heater, a sinker guy, a guy that’s gross off speed. Anything that was the plan that day, we got to work and we attacked it for any MLB pitcher.

CPB – You talked about the mental aspect as well. I know there are mental performance coaches. How did they help you kind of get that reset and get you to hit the ground running again back in Dunedin?

AN – I think everyone did a great job and just reminding me of who I am. Like I said, I’ve always been confident in my skills and who I am but just having those people around me to really enforce that and tell me that they believe in me and that I’m a great player definitely helps me. I’m never gonna forget about that, and I’m just always gonna stay confident in those skills.

CPB – I want to ask about the media portion of your job right now. I think it really kind of more or less started with that feature on MLB Network, which is a great documentary. How did that all come together and what was that process like, being really the main subject of that feature?

AN – I think MLB took an interest with just being able to, you know, really learn about me.  You don’t really see a lot of Indian baseball players at all, and I think I was in a really good spot to be put in that situation. They reached out to my agent, and we got it done and I thought it was a super cool experience getting to go to India, and film with some other young baseball players. They’re very good players and I thought the overall experience was very cool.

CPB – You were seeing a lot of TV crews. How long a process was that?

AN – It definitely took (a while). More of the process was spent on planning and what to do and how to put everything together. We only spent a couple of days in India and got to do all that stuff, but it did take a while to set it all up. But it came out pretty good.

CPB – We’ve seen you on MLB Network, CBC, Sportsnet, the Blue Jays broadcaster. You’ve gotten lots of media requests, but you seem to handle it all in stride. When did you first start getting really comfortable dealing with the media?

AN – I think I’ve always been pretty good with the media. I just like to be myself and give you the most honest answers I can give. That’s kind of how I’ve been. I think I’ve been very blessed to be able to kind of be good at it. I’m not gonna say I’m really good at it but I’ve been able to answer questions well. I think I’ve been blessed in that and I’m just gonna keep working at it, but just getting better over time for sure.

CPB – How much preparation does it take right now? The media is always gonna be a constant presence of baseball games, especially more so now. How are you able to compartmentalize and just kind of get on with your day after you’re done your media obligations?

AN – There’s things that come with playing professional sports, you know? Media is one of those so it’s just separating those little things and being able to to stay focused on the baseball part of the game. I think that’s the most important part. The reason we’re here is to play baseball at the highest level and to win games as a team. So whatever comes with it, we take it in stride and we do it. That’s kind of that’s how I look at it, you know? I’m gonna do what I have to do off the field and also be the best on the field that I can be.

CPB – I wanted to ask about getting assigned here to Vancouver. I know there’s some talk on if you would come out to Vancouver (to start 2025) but you were ready for the challenge and I’m sure you’re happy that you’re making the step up.

AN – Yeah, I thought personally I’d be ready for that for Vancouver to start the year and the Blue Jays have the same front (office) staff, got the same coaches and teammates. They’re all cheering for me to be in Vancouver, and I think it’s been very good so far. We’re just going to keep getting better every day.

CPB – I saw your parents were here in Vancouver and I know you’ve certainly depended on them a lot to help you develop as a young man. What does it mean having your parents and brother giving you their full support?

AN – It means a lot. My brother has not gotten the chance to visit me yet but my parents did come for a few days. Just having them you know in my corner to support me after every game, staying up late because it’s three hours ahead there. It’s like 1:00, 2:00 (in the morning) when the games are over and they’re still awake cheering me. Having that support from them is huge for any kid. I’m never going to take that for granted.

CPB – Starting off the year, you saw more time at the designated hitter position due to an arm injury.  I hear of some players going kind of crazy, just only batting and being off the field. How were you able to make that adjustment because it didn’t seem to affect your hitting?

AN – Yeah, it kind of must have been something with the weather changing a little bit. My arm was a little bit sore, nothing major, but they did a great job taking care of me. Gave me a couple days off, a couple DH games, but I think it’s the same process every day. It’s just those days I just didn’t do anything on the field for ground balls or at least I did ground balls, just not in the game. I didn’t play short, but it was the same process as a hitter. Nothing’s gonna affect those things. Defence and offence are separate. Just having that mindset and just being locked in on every at-bat was the same thing I’m doing now, even while I play short.

CPB – You got off to a tremendous start, hitting a few early home runs. I think the one in Tri-City was the one that got the most attention? Would you say that it’s maybe the farthest you’ve ever hit a ball?

AN – Yeah, I will say that is a top-five homer for me, distance-wise. I didn’t get to see where it landed but I was just looking for a good pitch to hit. That was probably the third game of the season, I think, and just looking for good pitches, trying to stick to an approach, like I said. He gave me a good pitch to hit and I put a good swing on it, but definitely a top-five longest homer that I’ve probably hit.

CPB – I got to see you hit one out in Everett and the one here in Vancouver. I noticed a bow and arrow celebration (for the latter). Is that something you’ve done before, or do you only break it out for special occasions?

AN – I’m named after an archer in Hindu mythology so just using that kind of represents that.  I think any special moment that we have as a team, whether it be a double, a homer, anything.  That’s a celebration I use. Just different guys have different things that they do, but that’s the meaning behind what I do.

CPB – Speaking of home runs, I know you hit one in spring training (and another the year before). What were those experiences like being able to go deep twice like that in spring training?

AN – It feels amazing. I think any opportunity you get to kind of play with the top squad is something that you should cherish and I think every opportunity I had to play with them in spring training, I took full advantage of it. I was very lucky and I’m very proud to have been able to do that in that moment.

CPB – Was there anyone you’ve really connected with as far as the big league club goes? 

AN – Yeah, I think I’m very close to Barger, (Addison Barger). Barger is from where I grew up too. He went to King (High School). I went to Crest (Strawberry Crest High School), pretty close to each other, so I’ve always been pretty close to him. Even this year, just growing the bond with him, hitting with him off the Trajeckt. Just learning how it is in a big league environment, what to expect, things like that. Just having that kind of relationship with him has been amazing.

CPB – As far as your current teammates, taking photos of you around the batting cage, Eddie Micheletti always seems to be nearby. Is there anyone on this year’s team you just kind of bonded with right away?

AN – I think all of them all of them are now my brothers, my family now, they’re always going to be. I think I’m very very close with all of them. I can’t single out anyone, I mean, I’m very close to all these guys and I love them all.

CPB – Hitting here at Nat Bailey Stadium, how big of a challenge has it been? I believe the team is second in the league in home runs, but the majority of them have come on the road. What are the challenges of hitting here at Nat Bailey Stadium because it really is kind of considered a pitcher’s park?

AN – Yeah, I would agree. I think at least early in the season, it’s a lot harder to hit the long ball at this field. You really got to get into one to get it out here so it’s just knowing that and playing to the advantage of the field. Hit them low, hit them hard, which we’ve already been doing.

CPB – What’s it been like playing here at the Nat? The crowds are bigger. In Spokane, you had some big crowds too but how would you compare playing in Vancouver compared to where you played before?

AN – It’s amazing. It’s everything I expected.  People always said that Nat Bailey was the best. It’s probably one of the better affiliates that we have and it gets packed and all of that’s true. Just seeing all the fans, hearing them. The anthems before the games is amazing. That’s the excitement that they have for the team and how into the game they are. I love it and I love just being here in general.

CPB – The (C’s) pocket schedules, you are the featured player. How does that make you feel when you see yourself on a pocket schedule like that, that they’re promoting you?

AN – Yeah, I think it’s super cool. But you know just staying focused on on the game, you know? I have seen it and I won’t lie to you, I think it’s very cool. But you know it could be any of us up there. I think everyone’s very special and very good players so I’m gonna take what I can from that.

CPB – The South Asian jerseys, you were actually catching the ceremonial first pitch. How special was that for you getting to wear that jersey?

AN – Super special. I never been a part of that in my life never had that kind of experience so you know having that experience here at home at Nat Bailey. I think was something I’m always gonna cherish. Just hearing the music and just seeing the crowd was into it. That’s something I’m always going to remember.

CPB – What would you say is the best part of your game and what is the part of the game that you think you need to still work on?

AN – I think my answer for this is, I believe that I can and will be a five-two player. I think every part of my game is a strength I’m not gonna say ‘I’m really really good at this, I’m really not good at this’. I think I’m good at everything. I’m gonna keep getting better at all of it, you know? So I continue working on the defense, on the running, on the hitting, everything. Just getting better at the same rate and keep making a difference on the field.

CPB – As far as shortstop goes, you certainly have shown the arm and the range for it. How is that process been going in getting used to the everyday grind of professional baseball and getting your reps in short?

AN – It’s been great, I think. I take a lot of pride in playing shortstop and I want to play there as long as I can at the big league level. As long as the team needs me to play short, I’m gonna go out there and give it my best as long as I can every day. Having pride in playing that position and being a leader on the field is something that I’m gonna continue doing to help the team win.

CPB – I know you’re in the same agency with Francisco Lindor and and I know he’s been a big role model for you. He was one of your favourite players growing up. Who else did you follow growing up ?

AN – I was a huge Giancarlo Stanton fan when he was in Miami. I went to the games to go see him, drove a lot of hours to go see him but he was, other than Lindor, he was the guy that I loved. Watching him smash homers out of the park all the time, especially that 2017 season where he won MVP. It’s like every day it was a homer. Funny enough, he was on a homer streak. I go to see him and he doesn’t (homer). I’m like, ‘Okay, I guess I’m not coming’. And then he homers. He was one of the guys I love, but if I had to pick a favourite player, it’s definitely Francisco Lindor. 

CPB – You went to Marlins games. Did you go to Rays games as well growing up?

AN – Yeah, I went to Marlins games, went to Rays games. I went to more Rays games because it was more local but just the baseball game in general was exciting already.

CPB – Did you see a lot of Blue Jays games when they were in town against the Rays or occasionally against the Marlins? Do you remember anything about the Blue Jays growing up?

AN – Funny enough, I’m gonna let this pass but funny enough, I had a Blue Jays lunch box in middle school. I actually was a big fan of Blue Jays then especially when it was like Bautista (José Bautista) and Encarnacion (Edwin Encarnacion), that kind of era. Huge fan of the Blue Jays but I kind of grew out of it.  I just kind of went to the Rays, you know, just bouncing around. I used to bounce around with Lindor wherever he was staying. I’ve never had a team, specifically, even though I guess the answer should be the Rays. But I never had a team, I always enjoyed watching everyone. But funny enough that you mentioned the Blue Jays, I actually had a Blue Jays lunch box.

CPB – I want to ask a little bit about your cricket background. I know there’s similarities but a bit of an oddball question. Is there anything about cricket you’d like to see maybe implemented in baseball, or maybe something in baseball you’d like to see implemented in cricket?

AN – I would say no. I think both of them are very unique to each other. I think cricket is cricket and baseball is baseball. I don’t think they should be messed with and tampered around. I think they’re both very beautiful sports and have their own uniqueness to them so I would say I’d hope nothing in baseball would be included and vice versa. 

CPB – Not like maybe having your home runs count for six points or something like that? 

AN – I mean that would be cool. I mean, now that you put it like that, that would be crazy, but then I guess there’d be a lot of runs scored in the game.

CPB – Final couple of questions. Did you have a favourite baseball uniform growing up? What would you say maybe was the best major league uniform you’ve seen?

AN – I couldn’t single out a certain uniform. I’ve always loved teams with powder blue uniforms. I love powder blue uniforms. My favourite colour is blue, just powder blue in general. I’ve always been attracted to them. The Blue Jays have some, the Rays, the Brewers. Just powder blue uniforms I’ve always liked. I am a big fan of the City Connects that the Blue Jays have now. A huge fan of those. But when I’m watching baseball, I’m not really looking at the jerseys as much, but yeah, powder blues.

CPB – Final question. The Canadians jerseys—the South Asian jersey, red, black, blue, white and gray.  Do you have a favourite?

AN – I think my favourite is the black. I like the black uniform a lot. All the uniforms are pretty sick but my personal favourite would be black.

Arjun Nimmala File

• Born – October 16, 2005, in Tampa, Florida.
• Height/Weight – 6-foot-1, 170 pounds
• Bats/Throws – Right/Right
• Uniform Numbers – Wore number 36 for the Florida Coast League Blue Jays in 2023. Wore number 72 with the FCL Blue Jays and number 18 for the Dunedin Blue Jays in 2024.
• Professional Debut – August 1, 2023, for the Florida Complex League Blue Jays at FCL Tigers. Drew walk in third professional at-bat against Donye Evans.
• First Professional Hit – August 3, 2023, for the FCL Blue Jays at FCL Yankees. Singled against Allen Facundo.
• First Professional Home Run – April 7, 2024, for the Dunedin Blue Jays. Homered against Sawyer Gipson-Long.
• C’s Debut – April 4, 2025, at Tri-City Dust Devils. Drew a walk in first Northwest League plate appearance.
• First C’s Home Run – April 6, 2025, at Tri-City. Homered off Logan Britt.
• Walk-Up Music – “Intoxicated” by Martin Solveig & GTA.
• Twitter – @arjun_baseball_
• Instagram – @arjunnimmala99
• Now You Know – Younger brother Ahkil Nimmala completed his freshman season with Florida Tech University as an 18-year-old. He was teammates with Arjun at Strawberry Crest High School and was named a 2023 Perfect Game All-American, one year after Arjun was a PGAA.

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Thanks a million again to Arjun Nimmala and C’s play-by-play announcer Tyler Zickel for putting this C’s Chat in play.