The Ascent of Yankees top Prospect Jasson Dominguez
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When the Yankees signed Jasson Dominguez, a then 16-year old international prospect, on July 2, 2019, high praise and expectations were immediately placed on the kid.
Dominguez hadn’t even played in the minor leagues, yet he was already being compared to the likes of Bo Jackson, Mike Trout, and Yankee all-time great Mickey Mantle for his five-tool skillset. He was already nicknamed “El Marciano," or “The Martian” because his skills were said to be “out of this world”.
Four years later, Dominguez has further honed his skills and has universally impressed the Yankees and their fans during Spring Training. Although he is still looking to play his first full season with the Somerset Patriots in Double-A, Yankee fans are already counting down the days until his MLB debut.
It actually took a bit of time for Dominguez to debut in the Yankees’ farm system, as the 2020 MiLB season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Dominguez still trained at the Charlie Nova Baseball Academy in Santiago, but his development was ultimately delayed by a year.
As determined as ever, Dominguez appeared in the All-Star Futures Game at Coors Field on July 11, 2021. This was just a month after he made his pro baseball debut with the Florida Complex League Yankees.
Playing 49 games with the Low-A Tampa Tarpons, Dominguez put up a .258/.346/.398 slash line with nine doubles, one triple, five home runs, and seven stolen bases. Fans and scouts were particularly impressed by his plate discipline and thorough knowledge of the strike zone; he drew 21 walks and displayed a keen batting eye.
Dominguez’s development that year was overshadowed by the meteoric rise of shortstop Anthony Volpe, who ended up as the Yankees’ top prospect by the end of 2021. Although the organization still highly valued Dominguez to the point where he was considered off-limits in trades, this didn’t stop impatient fans from including him in trade scenarios.
But in 2022, Dominguez developed even further to the point that he joined Volpe as a future cornerstone of the Yankees. Starting out with the Tarpons, he slashed .265/.373/.440 with 17 doubles, nine home runs, 19 steals, and a 134 wRC+.
The strong performance not only earned him a promotion to the High-A Hudson Valley Renegades, but also another trip to the All-Star Futures Game at Dodger Stadium. While there, he did this:
Dominguez's production climbed higher with the Renegades. In 40 games, he hit .306/.397/.510, drew 23 walks, hit six home runs, stole 17 bases, and scored 33 runs. His strikeout percentage dropped by nearly 10% while putting up a 145 wRC+ and .405 wOBA.
With the Renegades’ season over, Dominguez got the call to Somerset to contribute to their playoff push. After taking to his surroundings in five regular season games, Dominguez got red-hot in the playoffs. In five postseason games, he slashed .450/.560/.950 with three homers, five walks, and 10 RBI. Two of those homers came in the decisive Game 3 of the Eastern League Championship, which Somerset won 15-0 over the Erie SeaWolves.
So far in Spring Training, Dominguez has utterly delighted Yankee fans. He has as many total bases as he does at-bats, with four home runs and a 1.500 OPS.
Unlike Volpe, who looks like he’s MLB ready, Dominguez still needs to face higher level pitching, as he’s only played 10 total games (regular season and playoffs) with Somerset so far. Of course, he also should get a stint with the Triple-A Scranton Wilkes-Barre Railriders down the line.
But Dominguez, after missing out on a potential season of development in 2020, put in the work ethic and proved those glowing comparisons correct over his two minor league seasons. And just like Volpe, Dominguez will be a major drawing card for MiLB games this year, so if the Patriots are in town, expect an excited crowd eager to watch the future of the Bronx Bombers.
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