Jonathan Aranda -- Prospect Evaluation

Jonathan Aranda is a 26-year-old infielder in the Tampa Bay Rays organization who plays primarily second base and first base. Standing 6'0" and weighing 210 pounds, the left-handed batter from Tijuana, Mexico has accumulated 663 at-bats with a .275 batting average, .356 on-base percentage, and .442 slugging percentage, including 24 home runs. He made his MLB debut on June 24, 2022. Aranda has been consistently ranked among Tampa Bay's top prospects, earning a #6 ranking in 2023 and a spot on Baseball America's top-100 list at #96 in 2023, down from #20 in 2022. He was previously ranked as the Southern League's #10 prospect in 2021. Career transactions reveal extensive movement between the major league roster and the Durham Bulls AAA affiliate, with multiple injury placements documented including a fractured right ring finger and left wrist fracture in recent periods. Multiple scouting reports spanning from July 2021 through February 2023 provide additional evaluation context for the prospect.

Jonathan Aranda ranks No. 49 on the Tampa Bay Rays' top 50 prospects list. The 19-year-old switch-hitting second baseman from Tijuana, Mexico was signed as an international free agent on July 2, 2015 by scout Eddie Diaz. At 5'10" and 180 lbs, Aranda profiles as a defensive asset with outstanding range and hands at the position. Offensively, he demonstrates above-average contact abilities paired with above-average speed, though power development remains a question mark. Among DRB writers, he received a high ranking of 34 but was unranked by others. Aranda is the only Mexican national among the Rays' international prospect award winners across all organizational levels. He was most recently assigned to Yaquis de Obregon and placed on their reserve list in November 2017, with his last regular season assignment being to the Gulf Coast League in June 2017.