Jasson Domínguez’s play in left field so far in his career has left a lot to be desired, from bad jumps to awkward routes that made it hard to picture him sticking in the spot.
But the Yankees have kept him out there and in Monday’s 4-1 win over the Royals in The Bronx, Domínguez looked better than he ever has — especially in tracking down Salvador Perez’s line drive to deep left off Carlos Carrasco to open the fourth inning with the Yankees down by a run.
Domínguez later made a nice play on Jonathan India’s drive to the warning track to lead off the sixth.
“He keeps getting better,’’ Aaron Boone said. “Those were two really good ones. What I like is the ease of the routes. That’s where, since the start of the season, he’s grown. He’s using the right footwork and moves to the ball.”
Jasson Domínguez makes a catch during the Yankees-Royals game on April 14, 2025.Charles Wenzelberg/New York Post
Domínguez said he’s still getting accustomed to not being in center, where he said there’s more space to run.
Despite the improvements, Boone still removed Domínguez for Cody Bellinger, who pinch hit for Domínguez in the bottom of the eighth and finished the game in left.
Bellinger was held out of the starting lineup for the fourth time in the first 16 games.
Bellinger, acquired in a trade from the Cubs in December, has dealt with back tightness and food poisoning already this year, although Boone said Monday’s absence was due more to the schedule and that they are in the fourth day of 13 straight without an off-day.
“I’m trying to manage him through this 13 days in a row,” Boone said. “And it’s April, he had a back thing and is still getting treatment there.”
Boone added Bellinger is “doing well. I just want to pick some spots here.”
Bellinger may also get another game off when the team goes to Cleveland in a week, according to Boone, with Boone trying to get Trent Grisham more at-bats.
“It’s important that [Grisham] continues to play,” Boone said of the center fielder, who homered Monday.
It’s all part of what’s been a slow start from the inconsistent Bellinger, who has just two extra-base hits — as well as a whopping 15 strikeouts — in 53 plate appearances.
Luke Weaver has been excellent in six appearances out of the bullpen, including a scoreless inning Monday, but his velocity has been down noticeably from a year ago, with his four-seamer dipping from an average of 95.7 mph to 92.9 mph and his cutter going from 91.3 to 87.7, according to Statcast.
But it ticked up against the Royals, which Boone said before the game he believed would happen as Weaver got into the flow of the season.
Luke Weaver pitches during the Yankees-Royals game on April 14, 2025.Charles Wenzelberg/New York Post
Weaver was part of a bullpen effort that held Kansas City scoreless for four innings Monday and hasn’t allowed an earned run in the past 11 ¹/₃ innings.
One recent bright spot in the rotation was Will Warren, who picked up his first MLB win in his last outing.
Despite the decreased importance of that stat in recent years, the 25-year-old said it still carries weight.
“It’s a big deal to get it,’’ Warren said. “It means you went long enough and pitched well enough to keep your team in the game. The guys in here that have a lot of them are really good.”
The struggling Marcus Stroman received a cortisone shot in his balky left knee Sunday and, depending on how he responds from that, will start to throw.
And Luis Gil, sidelined at least until June with a lat strain, could start a throwing program Wednesday or Thursday if he gets the OK from the doctors.
Without Gil, Gerrit Cole and Clarke Schmidt, Boone acknowledged the starting rotation has walked too many batters overall, “especially down in the order.”
