Wade Boggs Athletic Award Presented To Strawberry Crest High Student

DOVER, FL — The Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners recognized a Strawberry Crest High School outstanding student-athlete with the 17th annual Wade Boggs Athletic Achievement Award.

The Wade Boggs Athletic Achievement Award honors a high school baseball player or team in Hillsborough County who displays outstanding athletic, scholastic and community achievements.

The 2023 Wade Boggs Athletic Achievement Award was presented to Arjun Nimmala. A highly skilled shortstop who is expected to be a first-round Major League Baseball draft pick, Nimmala was dominant in all phases on the Strawberry Crest baseball team this past season.

He hit a .479, with 6 home runs, 3 triples, 7 doubles and 29 RBIs, and had a .904 slugging percentage and 9 stolen bases.

Defensively, he recorded a fielding percentage of .958 with just three errors all season.

Nimmala is a two-time, first-team All-Western Conference selection, and the 2023 Florida Athletic Coaches Association’s District 15 Most Valuable Player.

In addition, Nimmala is community-oriented, adopting a local family every year during the holidays and providing them with gifts.

Nimmala just graduated from Strawberry Crest with a cumulative GPA of 6.9 in the academically rigorous International Baccalaureate Program. He plans to attend Florida State University to continue his education and play baseball.

This year’s award program also featured a first: repeat honorees. Sickles High’s Caden McDonald, the 2022 Boggs’ winner, received an honorable mention this year, and Wes Mendes of Jesuit High received an honorable mention for the second year in a row.

McDonald, a two-time Gryphons captain, led his team to the state championship in Class 6A and an overall record of a remarkable 30-2. McDonald slammed 12 home runs and drove in 33 despite missing two weeks due to an injury. In addition, he was the team’s ace on the mound, with 7 wins, 1 loss, 97 strikeouts in 72 innings, and an earned run average of 0.87. He graduated with a cumulative GPA of 6.5 and will attend the University of Florida to continue his education and play baseball.

Mendes, who helped lead the Tigers to the state title in 2022, remained a force in 2023, hitting .388 with 5 home runs, 8 doubles, 36 runs batted in and 14 stolen bases. He also went 4-0 on the mound, with a 2.07 ERA and 49 strikeouts in 27 innings. Mendes was a big reason the Tigers returned to the state championship game this year. Mendes, who logged more than 175 community service hours, will attend Ole Miss in the fall to continue his education and play baseball.

The county commission established the award in 2005 in honor of first-ballot National Baseball Hall of Fame member Wade Boggs. A resident of the Tampa Bay area since he was a child, Boggs is a 12-time All-Star who ended his 18-year Major League Baseball career as a member of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, retiring his number 12 in 2000.

The Boston Red Sox also honored Boggs when they retired his number 26 in 2016.

His career statistics include 3,010 hits, 1,513 runs, 578 doubles, 61 triples, 118 home runs, 1,014 runs batted in and a batting average of .328. He reached base safely in 80 percent of his 2,432 career games.

For more information, visit the Wade Boggs Athletic Achievement Award page.