6 Yankees breakout candidates making themselves undeniable in spring training

It's almost never a good idea to read too much into spring training, but it's hard for New York Yankees fans not to get excited about the vibes in Tampa these days — especially after a 2025 camp in which everything that could go wrong (Gerrit Cole lost to Tommy John surgery, the DJ LeMahieu and Marcus Stroman sagas) did go wrong.

Sure, Cole, Carlos Rodon and Clarke Schmidt will all start the regular season on the IL. And it would've been nice had Brian Cashman made an extra addition or two over the winter. But the injury report has been blessedly short so far [knocks furiously on every available piece of wood] and you can't help but notice how many young players are popping on a regular basis.

Again: We have a very long way to go, and meaningless exhibition baseball can play all sorts of tricks. But here are six breakouts just waiting to happen if their play during spring can translate beyond Opening Day.

OF Jasson Dominguez

Let's get the big one out of the way first. Dominguez tacked on two more hits against the Philadelphia Phillies on Saturday, raising his spring OPS to a blistering 1.081. He's got three homers and three steals across 12 games, and he's even held his own against left-handed pitching after struggling mightily from the right side of the plate last season.

Not bad for a guy who seemed to be given the ultimate vote of no confidence by his own team this offseason. Caveats apply here, to be sure; he's got 10 strikeouts to just two walks, and the level of competition hasn't exactly been overwhelming. But the physical tools were never in doubt for Dominguez. Some small adjustments at the plate against lefties and some more time in the outfield, and he suddenly has a path to becoming a solid every-day player. That would be a huge boost for the Yankees moving forwar

C Austin Wells

Italy's run to the semifinals has been the story of the World Baseball Classic so far, but Austin Wells winning over the entire Dominican Republic as the team's starting catcher isn't far behind. Beyond the new haircut and the clubhouse speeches, though, Wells is looking like a different guy at the plate right now — which could help him level up once he's back in the Bronx.

Defense isn't the problem; Wells remains an elite pitch framer. It was his offense that regressed in 2025, as his OBP cratered and the strikeouts spiked amid an overly aggressive approach at the plate. This spring, both in the Grapefruit League and the WBC, Wells appears to have gone back to the toe tap he used in 2024 rather than the leg kick of last year, and the results speak for themselves: a .983 OPS in spring training and an 1.107 mark in Classic play. If Wells pairs his excellent glove with an above-average bat, New York has a potential All-Star on its hands.

LHP Ryan Weathers

A lot of Yankees fans were disappointed when Weathers — not Freddy Peralta, not Edward Cabrera, not Sandy Alcantara — was Brian Cashman's lone pitching acquisition of the winter. And on the surface, Weathers' 8.68 ERA this spring might seem to prove those concerns well-founded.

But that's as fluky a number as you'll see this spring, mostly the result of a goofy-high .483 BABIP. Weathers' xFIP is at 3.34, which is much more in line with what the eye test shows: According to Eno Sarris of The Athletic, the lefty has posted the ninth-best Stuff+ mark of the spring, a catch-all metric that attempts to quantify a pitcher's arsenal based on its velocity, movement profile and location. With a high-90s fastball, a legit sweeper and changeup and a brand-new sinker, all the tools are here. If he can stay healthy (a big if considering his history), watch out — especially since injuries to Carlos Rodon and Gerrit Cole guarantee him a spot in the Opening Day rotation.

RHP Carlos Lagrange

No, Lagrange isn't going to make the Opening Day roster, and yes, that's totally fine. Because when you have an arm this electric, you owe it to him and to your team to give it every possible chance to make things work as a starter. Even more ridiculous than the 6-foot-7 righty's numbers this spring (0.93 ERA, 0.72 WHIP across three starts) are his highlights, with easy triple-digit gas that hitters haven't been able to catch up with.

Even more encouragingly, he walked just three batters over 9.2 innings of work after a 5.7 BB/9 in his first taste of Double-A last season. If he can simply throw enough strikes, the sky is the limit here; we're talking ace-level upside for someone with this caliber of stuff. And even if his eventual MLB future lies in the bullpen, what a future it will be when you consider how that stuff might play up in short bursts. The only question for New York is whether they'll rush him to the Show if they need relief help down the stretch.

LHP Brent Headrick

New York's lack of lefties in the bullpen is an underrated subplot this spring; there's virtually no depth beyond Tim Hill, who showed signs of decline last season. The opportunity is there for someone to earn a very crucial role on the Opening Day roster, and Headrick appears set on taking advantage of it.

He flashed big-time upside last season, posting a 3.13 ERA and an 11.7 K/9 in 17 appearances. He's built on that momentum this spring, too, with nine punch-outs in just 4.2 innings of work. The shape on the four-seamer is legit, the splitter and slider will play and, in true Yankees fashion, he's added a sinker as well. The toolbox is full; now all that's left is to keep throwing strikes and put it all together for a full, healthy season.

RHP Jake Bird

I understand if most Yankees fans have washed their hands entirely of Bird, given that he was so bad was coming over at the trade deadline that the team eventually sent him down to Triple-A. But New York didn't just acquire him for 2025; he's got three years of team control remaining, and the pitching development team clearly thought there was a lot to work with.

We're beginning to see why this spring. Bird was exclusively a sinker/sweeper pitcher last year, allowing lefties in particular to pick one pitch to focus on in a given at-bat. He's come out in 2026 with a new cutter that could be a difference-maker for him as it keeps left-handed hitters honest. He's walked four in 7.1 innings of work in spring training, so command remains a concern, but he's also struck out 10 over that span while allowing only six hits and a 3.86 ERA.

The Yankees don't have the bullpen depth to render Bird obsolete for another year. They need him to at least become trustworthy in middle relief, and so far, so good on that front.