ARLINGTON, Texas — By now, it has become clear that the Yankees believe sticking with Alex Verdugo in left field is their best option down the stretch.
That means Jasson Dominguez will continue waiting in the wings at Triple-A while racking up more at-bats and reps in the outfield during a season in which he has missed time rehabbing from Tommy John surgery and then suffering an oblique strain.
But is the top prospect ready for a return to the big leagues if and when he is called upon ?
Jasson Dominguez, who played in the Yankees’ loss to the Tigers at Williamsport during the Little League World Series, is big-league ready, according to scouts.AP
“He was a different guy on the field than everybody else,” an AL scout who saw Dominguez play recently at Triple-A said on Tuesday. “He looked like he was ready. I think in the Yankees lineup, he’s probably a six or seven-hole kind of guy right now. … He’s got whack, he can run. He brings a lot of things to the table.“I didn’t see anything that stood out that would say, ‘He needs more time here.’ ”
An NL scout who also saw Dominguez play for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre last month said the switch-hitting 21-year-old “looked surprisingly good for somebody who’s missed all the time that he’s missed.”
“He had pretty good at-bats, surprisingly his timing was good,” the NL scout said Tuesday. “He barreled up some balls really well from the left-handed side of the plate. I only saw one at-bat right-handed. But he looked fine in [batting practice]. Played solid in the outfield.”
Manager Aaron Boone has continued to leave the door open for Dominguez to join the Yankees at some point this month, despite not being called up on Sunday when rosters expanded.
But at this point, the club appears more inclined to keep rolling with Verdugo instead of throwing Dominguez — with nine games of big league experience — into the fire as the starting left fielder down the stretch of a division race.
For now, the Yankees are sticking with Alex Verdugo, who hit a single during their win over the Rangers on Sept, 2, 2024.Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
“It’ll be interesting,” the NL scout said. “I’m not a big Verdugo fan, but I’m also maybe not a fan of throwing [Dominguez] into the heat.”
It was notable on Monday when Boone, in a span of a few minutes while answering different questions about each player, said Dominguez had some “room for improvement” defensively while opining that Verdugo should be “in the Gold Glove conversation.”
If the Yankees continue to bat Verdugo eighth or ninth — which is where he has been in each of the last nine games including Tuesday (eighth) — his offensive struggles may be more palatable if he is providing strong defense, though he was batting 12-for-34 over his last nine games entering Tuesday.
