A Toronto Blue Jay minor leaguer has won the Dominican Winter League’s MVP.
At the end of the 2025 season, the Jays signed Eloy Jiménez to a minor league deal, then signed him to a second one this off-season. It looks like a move that could pay off, as Jiménez has had a strong Dominican Winter League season.
Playing with Toros del Este in LIDOM, the 29-year-old won the league’s Most Valuable Player for the round robin stage, as he slashed .278 with a home run. In the regular season, Jiménez slashed .246/.324/.426 with five home runs in 139 plate appearances. In the postseason, he slashed .321/.349/.506 with a home run in 86 plate appearances.
Eloy Jiménez win 🏆 Round Robin MVP Dominican league #Toronto #Toros #EloyJimenez pic.twitter.com/vAAwIsUh7g
— Mike Rodriguez (@mikedeportes) January 23, 2026
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Jiménez, a designated hitter/outfielder, has had strong seasons in the big leagues in the past. In his rookie season back in 2019, the Cuban hit 31 home runs while slashed .267/.315/.513 for a 115 wRC+. During the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, he hit 14 home runs and slashed .296/.332/.559 for a 138 wRC+, winning a Silver Slugger award.
He regressed to a 100 wRC+ in 231 plate appearances during the 2021 season, but had a strong 2022 when healthy, slashing .295/.358/.500 with 16 home runs in 327 plate appearances for a 143 wRC+ and a career-best 1.6 fWAR. Jiménez’s 2023 season was fine, but he struggled in 2024, the last season he appeared in a big league game.
Most of the 2025 season was spent in the Tampa Bay Rays organization, with Jiménez slashing .278/.335/.397 with three home runs in 167 plate appearances. After being released, Jiménez joined the Triple-A Buffalo Bisons where he had subpar numbers.
Although winning LIDOM’s MVP is encouraging, it’s hard to see Jiménez fitting anywhere on the Jays roster. He’s barely played another outfield the past few seasons, and the Jays have a designated hitter in George Springer. Most of Jiménez’s LIDOM season was spent at first base, which will be occupied by Vladimir Guerrero Jr. for the next 14 seasons.
The Jays have had some minor league signings that have worked out recently, namely Ernie Clement in 2023 and Eric Lauer in 2025. Perhaps Jiménez could be the next minor league signing to work out well for the Blue Jays.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Blue Jays Nation, Oilersnation, and FlamesNation. She can be followed on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.