Jonathan Aranda

Jonathan Aranda

26-Year-Old First Baseman1B
Tampa Bay Rays
2025 Fantasy Outlook
Aranda's 2024 was a potpourri of events. He had a fantastic spring but broke a finger near the end of it and that short-circuited his start to the season. He made it to the major league roster in May when the Rays were dealing with injuries but went back down in early June and wasn't seen again until the end of August. His time in Triple-A Durham was unlike his previous season as an oblique strain there limited his playing time and his ability to hit for power. Even more concerning was that he lost his contact abilities, with a career-worst 32.6 percent strikeout rate. The only true upside to his season was how he closed it, as he showed some surprising pop down the stretch with five doubles and five homers after his final promotion. Most of his batted ball metrics trended in a positive direction as the season closed, and the temporary home for the Rays in 2025 should be a good fit for Aranda. He is out of options, so he is a lock to make the team as long as he isn't traded in the offseason. The 1B-only eligibility makes him truly only draftable in the draft-and-hold formats or deeper mono-league formats, but there are enough late signs of growth from him for managers to remain intrigued for 2025. Read Past Outlooks
RANKS
Rest of Season From Preseason
#318
ADP
$Signed a one-year contract with the Rays in March of 2024.
On bench for Opening Day
1BTampa Bay Rays
March 28, 2025
Aranda is not in the lineup for Friday's opener against the Rockies.
ANALYSIS
The Rockies are sending left-hander Kyle Freeland to the bump, so it's not a surprise the lefty-hitting Aranda will begin the contest on the bench. He is a candidate to come in mid-game when the Rockies use a right-handed reliever, and the 26-year-old remains likely to start at first base or DH against most righties.
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Batting Stats
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2025
2024
2023
2022
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2024 MLB Game Log
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2023 MLB Game Log
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Left/Right Batting Splits
Since 2023
 
 
+49%
OPS vs RHP
2025
No Stats
2024
 
 
+37%
OPS vs RHP
2023
 
 
+121%
OPS vs RHP
OPS PA R HR RBI SB AVG OBP SLG
Since 2023vs Left .503 28 2 0 0 0 .130 .286 .217
Since 2023vs Right .751 219 33 8 28 0 .245 .324 .427
2025vs Left 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2025vs Right .000 1 0 0 1 0 .000 .000 .000
2024vs Left .557 19 1 0 0 0 .176 .263 .294
2024vs Right .765 124 21 6 14 0 .243 .315 .450
2023vs Left .333 9 1 0 0 0 .000 .333 .000
2023vs Right .735 94 12 2 13 0 .247 .340 .395
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Home/Away Batting Splits
Since 2023
Even Split
2025
No Stats
2024
 
 
+37%
OPS at Home
2023
 
 
+59%
OPS on Road
OPS PA R HR RBI SB AVG OBP SLG
Since 2023Home .725 107 17 4 16 0 .223 .299 .426
Since 2023Away .724 140 18 4 12 0 .240 .336 .388
2025Home .000 1 0 0 1 0 .000 .000 .000
2025Away 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2024Home .879 56 10 4 10 0 .269 .321 .558
2024Away .641 87 12 2 4 0 .211 .299 .342
2023Home .542 50 7 0 5 0 .167 .280 .262
2023Away .863 53 6 2 8 0 .289 .396 .467
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Prospect Rankings History
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Defensive Stats
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Past Fantasy Outlooks
2024
2023
2022
Aranda has done nothing but rake since advancing to the advanced levels of the minor leagues. .330/.426/.495 in High A ball, .325/.410/.540 in Double-A, and .328/.421/.565 in Tirple-A ball over nearly 900 plate appearances. However, none of that has translated into major league success as he owns a career .212/.311/.346 line in 190 major league plate appearances sprinkled over the past two seasons. Aranda is a patient hitter who is very accepting of his walks and made solid contact s a minor leaguer but the contact has been an issue as a big leaguer with a 28% strikeout rate and and 78% contact rate at the big league level. Aranda is nearly undraftable until the reserves for a few reasons, primarily because he is DH-only on draft day. Secondly, he is a terrible defender with poor range and has trouble with lefties so he loses playing time due to both deficiencies. Some may label him as Luiz Arraez lite whereas it would be more prudent to call him an Arraez knockoff.
Last year saw Luis Arraez surprise many with his hitting prowess at the plate that helped them, and Minnesota, gloss over his defensive struggles in the field. Aranda is that same story, but at the minor league level. Since graduating from the lower levels of the minors, he has hit .330 in High-A, .325 in Double-A, and .318 in Triple-A over the course of nearly 900 plate appearances with over a .400 OBP. Simply put, the young man can hit and he does so to all fields. He does not have Arraez's same incredible contact rate, but he does share the defensive challenges in that Aranda does not have a full-time defensive home. He lacks the range a modern day second baseman needs with the shift rules in place and he is not terribly quick either. The crowded depth chart in Tampa Bay with many players currently out of options could have Aranda right back in Durham if the club does not trade him first to a club more forgiving of his defensive shortcomings.
Aranda was 62 percent better than the average Double-A hitter and 70 percent better than the average High-A hitter during his breakout age-23 season. His exploits earned him a spot on the Rays' 40-man roster this offseason. While at Double-A, he played 48 games at first base, 17 games at second base and 10 games at third base. It will be his bat that earns him a look either this year or next, as he hit .330/.418/.543 with an 18.5 K% on the season. His 25.2 LD% and 39.0 FB% at Double-A were particularly encouraging marks. At 5-foot-10, 173 pounds, Aranda looks more like a second baseman than a first baseman, but it's just a matter of getting his left-handed bat in the lineup somewhere, so he will also likely get starts at designated hitter. He should spend most of the year at Triple-A.
More Fantasy News
Regular role expected
1BTampa Bay Rays
February 3, 2025
Aranda is expected to see regular at-bats as the Rays' designated hitter while also serving as the backup to Yandy Diaz at first base to begin the 2025 season, Adam Berry of MLB.com reports.
ANALYSIS
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Sitting versus Skubal
1BTampa Bay Rays
September 24, 2024
Aranda is not in the lineup for Tuesday's game in Detroit.
ANALYSIS
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Goes deep in third straight
1BTampa Bay Rays
September 23, 2024
Aranda went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run Sunday against the Blue Jays.
ANALYSIS
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Homers again in win
1BTampa Bay Rays
September 21, 2024
Aranda went 2-for-3 with two-run home run, a walk and an additional run scored in Saturday's 3-2 win over the Blue Jays.
ANALYSIS
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Pops fourth homer
1BTampa Bay Rays
September 21, 2024
Aranda went 1-for-3 with a solo home run Friday against the Blue Jays.
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Latest Fantasy Rumors
Extra year of team control
1BTampa Bay Rays
February 14, 2025
According to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times, the Rays were granted a fourth option year for Aranda.
ANALYSIS
The 26-year-old utilized his three minor-league options in each of the past three seasons, but the organization was granted another year, potentially due to the finger and oblique injuries that sidelined him for much of 2024. Aranda had a .738 OPS in 44 games last year and is poised to see regular plate appearances between first base and designated hitter in 2025.
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