Blue Jays 2015 Top Prospects Wrap Up: Mitch Nay

When the Toronto Blue Jays used the 58th overall pick in the 2012 draft on Mitch Nay, they were getting a solid defensive 3rd baseman with cannon for an arm and plus power potential.

Questions surrounded the 22-year-old from Tarzana, California’s ability to hit enough to maintain a respectable average, but there was little doubt about his power potential; unfortunately, his power game has yet to show up. On the plus side, Nay has hit well enough to hold a respectable average.

In 2014, Nay was voted the Best Defensive 3rd baseman in the Midwest League; unfortunately, Nay’s power game had yet to translate into game power as he finished with 34 doubles, 3 triples, 3 HR, and 59 RBI. At 21, many scouts felt that doubles would start clearing the walls and his home run totals would rise.

The 2015 season started off well for Mitch, as he was a non-roster invitee to the Blue Jays spring training facilities. In 9 spring games, Nay hit .231 with 3 hits, 2 RBI, and 4 K’s.

After getting an 11 game audition with the Dunedin Blue Jays in 2014, Nay started the 2015 season back with the D-Jays. In the early months of the season, the opposition exposed Nay’s long swing, which resulted in sub-.220 batting average in April and May. Some adjustments were made which helped Nay turn his season around and allowed him to hit .244 in June and .333 in July.

The 6’3″ 2012 comp pick had his season cut short due to injury, going on the DL on August 17th. His last game came on August 16th  against the Clearwater Threshers, where he went 2-for-4 with a double, an RBI, and 2 strike outs.

In 109 games, Nay hit 5 home runs, drove in 42 RBI and scored 32 runs. He experienced a slight bump in his power with a .110 ISO, but he saw his K% increase from 15.3% to 17.2% while maintaining a 7 BB%.

The talented 3rd baseman regressed in OPS, wRC, wOBA, BABIP, OBP, and finally slugging. He did see an increase in homeruns and triples, but those gains were offset by the decrease in doubles.

Home run from 2014: (No MiLB.tv for Dunedin games)

In the field, Nay continues to post excellent numbers: 2.24 RF and .922 fielding percentage. He committed 19 errors, turned 12 double plays, and collected 173 assists in 243 total chances. Many scouts feel a move to the outfield or 1st is in his future, but unless he finds more in-game power I don’t see it.

2016 Projections

Mitch Nay will return to Dunedin, where he will continue to man 3rd base. With Rowdy Tellez, Ryan McBroom, and Matt Dean in the organization, there is no rush to switch Nay to the other side of the diamond. At 22 years-old, Nay still has time to develop so patience will be needed, but he better do it quickly because his prospect shine is starting to loss it’s luster.

Showing more patience and power at the plate will be paramount in 2016. If it has a repeat of 2015, he’d be lucky to show up on any Blue Jays prospect lists.

Mitch Nay photo credit: Jay Blue