TAMPA – When Jasson Domínguez not too long ago walked into the Yankees’ clubhouse at George M. Steinbrenner Area, he discovered his locker in an sudden spot.
His stall is between two MVPs: Aaron Decide and Cody Bellinger. Certainly that’s no coincidence.
“I was kind of surprised,” the 22-year-old mentioned. “But it’s a good thing to be in that group and be able to learn from them.”
After years of hype and a few September call-ups, Domínguez now finds himself in prime place to grow to be an Opening Day starter for the primary time. The Yankees didn’t hassle to deal with left subject after Alex Verdugo hit free company, making Domínguez the favourite for the job by a large margin.
“I’d like to think so,” Aaron Boone mentioned when requested if The Martian is his left fielder, although he’ll must earn it. “I’d love for him to secure it and grab it, but my expectation is that he will.”
Domínguez had an opportunity to unseat Verdugo on the finish of final season, however the pure middle fielder struggled in left subject and didn’t hit a lot after restoration from UCL surgical procedure and an indirect harm robbed him of minor league reps. The Yankees caught with the sunshine hitting however defensively sound Verdugo within the postseason whereas Domínguez absorbed their run to the World Collection from the bench.
Domínguez now feels extra snug in left after spending a bit of his offseason on the Yankees’ participant improvement advanced in Tampa. There he labored on his reads and angles with outfield coach Luis Rojas.
“It’s a little different,” Domínguez mentioned, “but I think it’ll be good.”
Jasson Domínguez doing drills within the outfield pic.twitter.com/64KA9JaW0f
Boone, who plans on utilizing Bellinger in middle, added that the Florida solar will assist Domínguez prep for left this spring.
“If you can play outfield in the Grapefruit League, you’re in a pretty good spot,” the supervisor mentioned.
Along with left subject enchancment, Domínguez additionally expects higher outcomes from the best aspect of the plate. These had been onerous for him to return by within the majors and minors final yr, however he plans on remaining a switch-hitter.
Domínguez, who slashed .179/.313/.304 with two homers and 4 RBI over 18 huge league video games, admitted to feeling “a little bit lost” on the best aspect final yr. After specializing in the rhythm of his right-handed minimize, he’s anticipating extra manufacturing from either side.
“I felt it could be better. I feel I was struggling a little bit,” Domínguez mentioned of his basic output. “This season’s gonna be better at right-handed.”
Positive sufficient, Domínguez blasted a house run off Carlos Rodón whereas hitting from the best aspect later within the day.
Jasson Dominguez goes YARD
The No. 28 prospect in baseball crushed this homer off of Carlos Rodón … from the best aspect of the plate too 😏👀
With Domínguez set to be a daily for the Yankees in 2025, expectations are excessive. That’s nothing new for the Dominican native, nevertheless, as he’s been surrounded by noise since signing with the Yankees for $5.1 million as a 16-year-old in 2019.
So far as he’s involved, the strain is welcome.
“It’s definitely there,” he mentioned. “The pressure is there. But I feel like it’s a good thing to have because it’s motivated me to get better and to be the player that everyone expects me to be.”
Initially Revealed: February 17, 2025 at 11:59 AM EST
