TAMPA — Jasson Domínguez may discover himself in a job he used to not take care of this season.
The rookie left fielder is among the Yankees’ choices to steer off, a job he didn’t like within the minors till Triple-A supervisor Shelley Duncan pressured him to do it. It wasn’t that Domínguez, a high prospect with energy, demanded that he hit in the midst of the order or one thing like that. He simply felt like he didn’t have sufficient time to prepare after operating in from the outfield.
“That was my thing,” the switch-hitting Domínguez mentioned. “I gotta run hard to the dugout. I gotta get my leg guard. I gotta get my sliding glove.”
The 22-year-old additionally defined that he used to put on socks on his arms to guard towards an allergic response he needed to his batting gloves, a problem that former Yankee Alex Verdugo additionally offers with. However Domínguez has since obtained batting gloves that don’t hurt him. Stuffing his socked arms into gloves is one much less factor he wants to fret about now.
“I felt like I had no time. But Shelley Duncan made me lead off on purpose. Now I’m good with it,” Domínguez mentioned. “I found that I can have time to get my things ready. I don’t have to rush it.”
Whether or not Domínguez must rush within the huge leagues stays to be seen, as Aaron Boone has different choices within the one-hole, together with Jazz Chisholm Jr., Anthony Volpe and even Cody Bellinger. Boone has additionally mentioned gamers may rotate within the function primarily based on matchups.
Chisholm led off towards the Tigers in Sunday’s spring exhibition, whereas Domínguez hit fourth.Domínguez led off within the Yankees’ spring opener on Friday. He drew a stroll, scored a run and picked up an RBI.
“He’s one of the guys I’m considering for it,” Boone mentioned. “I’ll play around with some things here as we go, but I at least think that’s a possibility.”
Boone added that he doesn’t have any reservations about utilizing an inexperienced participant within the leadoff spot.
“I’m not going to be afraid to put somebody in that position because they’re young or whatever,” the supervisor mentioned. “If we feel like they’re ready to go and be a real contributor on our team, I’m going to try and put them in the best spot for our lineup and expect that to work.”
Domínguez has hit first as soon as within the huge leagues, doing so within the second-to-last sport of the common season final 12 months. He went 1-for-4 with a stroll and a strikeout.
The Martian mentioned that he’d be comfortable to steer off if Boone asks him to, although he is aware of nothing has been set in stone. Domínguez additionally is aware of the function comes with lots of duty, because the Yankees want their leadoff man to set the desk for Aaron Decide and the center of the Bombers’ order.
“Judge is a great hitter no matter what,” Domínguez mentioned. “But if he needs to see a couple pitches, I can get him that.”
