Eloy Jiménez DVOA, Advanced Stats, & Fantasy Rankings

Tampa Bay Rays outfielder/designated hitter Eloy Jimenez will start the 2025 regular season at Triple-A Durham. Jimenez started to come on strong of late at the plate in Grapefruit League action, but it wasn't enough for him to beat out Curtis Mead, who has been one of the best overall hitters this spring. The 28-year-old Dominican has hit .235 (8-for-34) with a homer, double, four RBI and a run scored in 12 spring games played. Jimenez continues to fall after slashing a combined .238/.289/.336 with a career-low .626 OPS, six home runs and 23 RBI in 98 games in 2024 with the Chicago White Sox and Baltimore Orioles. The oft-injured outfielder continued to deal with injuries last year and made two separate trips to the injured list. Jimenez hits the ball hard when he makes contact, but he hit too many ground balls last year and hasn't displayed an ability to stay healthy long enough to make any real impact.

According to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times, designated hitter Eloy Jimenez will have to earn a spot on the bench during spring training. Topkin noted that the newly acquired slugger will likely fight for one of the final bench spots alongside second base prospect Curtis Mead. Jimenez inked a minor-league deal with Tampa Bay earlier in the season. Last season, Jimenez played in 98 games at the major league level, spending time with both the White Sox and Orioles. He posted a .238/.289/.336 slash line with six home runs and three stolen bases. This was a steep decline from the .272/.317/.441 line and the 18 long balls he posted during the 2023 campaign. Despite the drop in production, Jimenez still generated a 49.0 percent hard-hit rate, which placed him in the 90th percentile. Fantasy managers in deeper AL-only formats should monitor his progression during spring training, as he could be a viable target for power if he makes the Opening Day roster.

Free-agent designated hitter Eloy Jimenez and the Tampa Bay Rays agreed to a minor-league deal on Monday, according to sources. The 28-year-old played for the Chicago White Sox and Baltimore Orioles this past season and is now hoping to rebuild his career with the Rays. The 28-year-old right-handed hitter slashed only .238/.289/.336 with six home runs in 98 total games in 2024 with the White Sox and Orioles and is no lock to make it back to the major-league level, let alone find a significant role in Tampa in 2025. The Dominican outfielder was once a prized prospect in the White Sox system, but injuries have mostly derailed his career -- Jimenez has played in over 100 games at the MLB level just twice, with one of them being his rookie year in 2019, when he hit a career-high 31 homers and drove in 79 runs. He did hit the ball hard last year, but he also was on the injured list twice.