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Los Angeles' Arjun Nimmala, Jake Munroe Early Standouts In Fall Ball
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- Los Angeles' Arjun Nimmala, Jake Munroe Early Standouts In Fall Ball
(USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect)
Different franchises use the Arizona Fall League (AFL) for different reasons. The Los Angeles Angels decided to use the 2026 AFL season as a way for two of their most highly regarded position-player prospects to gain added experience before they head into the 2027 season.
And, boy, have shortstop Arjun Nimmala and third baseman Jake Munroe taken the opportunity and ran as the AFL season reaches its midway point.
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Nimmala, the Angels' No. 1 overall prospect according to MLB Pipeline, was just named the AFL's Hitter of the Week for the period from Oct. 12-17. In three games, Nimmala, who turned 21 on Oct. 16, went 6-for-11 (.545) with two doubles, two triples, three RBIs, four walks and five runs scored, which factors out to a 1.758 OPS.
As of Oct. 19, Nimmala was hitting .297 with a .988 OPS with one home run and seven RBIs while working 10 walks with an equal number of strikeouts.
After a strong season at Double-A Rocket City (.315 average and .903 OPS), Munroe put himself firmly on the prospect radar and his performance thus far hasn't done anything to damper the growing opinions of his potential.
In seven games, he's hitting .280 with a .975 OPS courtesy of three doubles and a homer with four RBIs and five runs thrown in. Like Nimmala, his eye at the plate has been impressive, with seven walks to match seven strikeouts.
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Speaking of eyes, Munroe's showing caught those of Keith Law, The Athletic's senior baseball writer and prospect guru.
After seeing Munroe play, he wrote : "He has bat speed, and the swing is going to continue to produce power. I saw a homer and two doubles from him across two games, with the home run coming off a right-on-right sweeper at his knees. He's a top-10 prospect in their system already, and trending up."
The Angels' final position player at Mesa, first baseman Ryland Zaborowski, has also held his own with .259 average and .814 OPS through eight games, with a homer and four RBIs and, again, an equal number of walks to strikeouts, in his case, eight of each.
On the pitching side, things have been a bit more hit and miss, while keeping in mind that some pitchers have been instructed to focus on using - and improving - a certain pitch at the expense of others, with pitching in the thin air of Arizona also challenging.
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With that being said, Sam Tookian has been the Angels' most impressive hurler with three scoreless innings under his belt in which he has allowed four hits and walked two.
Najer Victor has made the most appearances among the Angels' farmhands with four, during which he has thrown 3.2 innings and allowed three earned runs for a 7.36 ERA with a 1-1 record. He does have five strikeouts.
Yeferson Vargas has pitched to an 8.10 ERA in 3.1 innings with three ERs allowed; Peyton Olejnik has made two appearances in which he has given up seven runs (six earned) in 4.2 innings for an 11.57 ERA; and Kyle Robinson is 0-1 in two games with nine earned runs allowed in 4.1 innings (18.69 ERA). He has especially been hurt by serving up seven walks.
