The Toronto Blue Jays are probably going to be patient with their top prospect, shortstop Arjun Nimmala, as works his way up the Minor League ranks. That said, it doesn’t mean that his scorching start to the year in High-A with the Vancouver Canadians isn’t getting noticed. In fact, it could be putting pressure on veteran shortstop Bo Bichette sooner rather than later.
Let’s be clear, Nimmala has a long way to go before he makes his MLB debut. He’s still just 19 years old and in his third professional season after being a first-round pick in 2023. Toronto has no reason to rush his progress — especially when you consider that, this time last year, he needed a long time just to get his feet under him with Dunedin.
But while Toronto won’t just force him onto the MLB squad, Nimmala continuing to swing a hot bat in the Minors could spell trouble for Bichette. He becomes an unrestricted free agent after this season, and it's unclear how motivated the Blue Jays will be to meeting his asking price after already coughing up $500 million to keep Vladimir Guerrero Jr. around. And with Nimmala surging through the minors, they’d have no reason to meet Bichette’s demands.
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The Toronto Blue Jays should bank on surging MLB prospect as Bo Bichette extension looms
The Blue Jays would be playing the long game with Nimmala. Again, he’s just 19 years old, and rushing him to Double-A could do more harm than good right now. Let him continue to stay hot in High-A and see if he can be consistent enough to warrant a move up.
But he’s quickly rising up the MLB Pipeline rankings, and if he ends the season in Double-A and stays hot at the plate, you could make the argument that in a year or two, he could be Bichette’s replacement. The Blue Jays would have to not just have the ultimate confidence, but ultimate patience, too.
Nimmala might not be ready for his MLB debut until late 2026 or even the 2027 season. He’d still be around 21 years old, which would give him more than enough time to grow and become a staple up the middle for the Blue Jays.
It’s something Toronto will have to think about. Bichette is slashing .281/.330/.386 this season with two home runs and 18 RBI. Offense has been an issue for the Blue Jays in 2025; Bichette would have to stand out down the stretch to justify the Blue Jays paying him with his heir apparent soaring through the Minors.
The Blue Jays are in a good spot with a contingency plan in place if they don’t want to pay Bichette. They just better hope it works out. And they can’t rush Nimmala through the Minors, no matter what.