As was the case in 2025, New York Yankees outfielder Jasson Domínguez should be penciled in his team’s Opening Day lineup. There’s only one difference: Domínguez won’t be wearing the Yankees’ road grays when they open the year on Wednesday night against the San Francisco Giants. Instead, Domínguez will be at Triple–A Scranton/Wilkes–Barre after the big–league club reassigned him to minor–league camp.
The move wasn’t necessarily shocking, even after Domínguez enjoyed an impressive spring. There were simply no realistic opportunities for Domínguez to play regularly in the majors, given the fact that the Yankees’ three outfield starters and the injury–prone Giancarlo Stanton are all healthy. Regardless of whether or not Domínguez’s long–term future is in New York, one thing is clear: the Yankees have done wrong by their former top prospect for nearly a year now.
The Yankees unsurprisingly botched the Jasson Domínguez situation
Before we go any further, we have to ask ourselves when the Yankees specifically began mishandling the Domínguez problem, because there are various answers, many of which are valid. Was it when they kept him on the big–league bench beginning last summer? Or was it when they opted not to trade him at the deadline? Is there even a case to be made that bringing Trent Grisham back was the wrong move?
Personally, I think the mistake began when the Yankees decided not to send Domínguez back to Triple–A at some point either in July or early August. If Domínguez wasn’t getting regular at–bats, then there was absolutely zero reason for him to stay on the big–league roster.
However, Boone and Brian Cashman are notoriously stubborn. Any argument about Domínguez benefiting from being around established veterans like Stanton, Aaron Judge, or Paul Goldschmidt is, frankly, incredibly weak. If the Yankees truly wanted Domínguez to develop, there would have been zero risk in demoting him when Grisham solidified his place in the everyday lineup.
Did Domínguez help his case with a high strikeout rate and a disappointing lack of power? Of course not, but that’s even more justification for why he should have spent the second half in Triple–A.
Should the Yankees have traded Jasson Domínguez? Well…
Now, this is where things get complicated, because I definitely understand the argument that Domínguez shouldn’t have been traded this offseason. Yes, the Yankees could have benefited from adding Milwaukee Brewers ace Freddy Peralta, but would it have been worth trading Domínguez for a rental? Perhaps not, especially considering that Peralta appears unlikely to sign an extension with the Mets before Opening Day.
The counter, though, is the Yankees’ championship window. For as talented as the Yankees are, no one can deny that the current core is getting older, with Judge and Gerrit Cole both in their mid–30s. There must come a time when a team asks itself if focusing on the now is worth mortgaging the future.
In hindsight, keeping Domínguez in the organization was the right move, whereas the true mistake was forcing him to stay on the big–league bench. Even now, it’s mind–boggling to understand why the Yankees felt that was smart, especially when Stanton stayed healthy upon returning from tennis elbow last June.
What’s the (realistic) next step for Jasson Domínguez and the Yankees?
As easy as it is to suggest that the Yankees should trade Domínguez now, what would be the point? Very rarely do you see an impact player traded either in spring training or in April, and the Yankees aren’t — or at least, shouldn’t — give up Domínguez for pennies on the dollar.
For the sake of conversation, let’s assume that Grisham or Stanton needs to go on the injured list at some point. Naturally, Domínguez would be the next man up. But what happens if Grisham returns to his 2024 form, or his power stroke suddenly vanishes? Would the Yankees realistically move Grisham back to the bench and name Domínguez the starting left fielder again?
At this stage, the best thing the Yankees can do is wait until June 1. By that point, we should have an idea of which teams are either out of the playoff race or are open to trading players who no longer fit in their plans, as the Red Sox did with Rafael Devers last June.
All of this is an unfortunate saga that the Yankees brought upon both themselves and Domínguez. He’ll play the entire season at 23 years old, and he’s under team control through 2031. Yet, does anyone really genuinely believe that the Yankees will course correct and get things right at any point this year? I certainly don’t.
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