J.J. Cooper of Baseball America had a glowing assessment when a reader asked him the following:
When do you think Brandon Nimmo will make his MLB debut? Do you see him as a top of the order hitter?
Nimmo was one of the best players in the Florida State League during the first half of the 2014 season. He struggled after a midseason promotion to the Eastern League, but much of that decline could be attributed to less luck when he put the ball in play–his power numbers and strikeout rate were roughly in line with what he did in the Florida State League, but he went from hitting .401 when he put the ball in play in the FSL to posting a .283 BABIP in the EL.
Nimmo has made significant strides in the past two years by adding strength. He now can sting the ball when he works himself into hitters counts, and he has the knowledge of the strike zone to get into those hitter counts. He might not ever have enough power to fit as a profile corner outfielder, but he’s shown scouts that he should be able to stick in center field, where his on-base skills and gap power both would play well.
As far as an ETA, Nimmo could put himself in position for a call-up to New York with a strong first half. He’s not going to push Juan Lagares out of center field, but he could play left field in the short term. His arm won’t really play in center field.
Cooper looks at Nimmo as a top of the order hitter for now, but expects that eventually he can grow into a middle of the order hitter as he continues to fill out.
In an interview with MMO’s John Bernhardt last month, Sandy Alderson said that Nimmo will most likely begin the season at Triple-A Las Vegas despite spending a little less than half a season at Double-A in 2014.
“There are several qualities that I think distinguish Brandon. One is his commitment to excellence, if you will. He’s a tremendously competitive individual. He takes his preparation very seriously,” Alderson told us.
Sandy also told us that Nimmo began to show flashes of the power he was projected to have when the Mets drafted him with their top pick in 2011.
“He has grown physically very impressively over the last couple of years through offseason workouts. He has an approach that’s very consistent with what we try to promote, which is selectivity at the plate. Being aggressive with good judgment, I guess, is how we look at it — getting a good pitch to hit. If anything, at Binghamton, I think he began to demonstrate a little more power, which we think he has. There may be a little trade-off between his discipline at the plate and his ability to turn on the ball, but I think that’s something that’s coming. He’s a very committed guy.”
