Having signed with the New York Yankees in July 2019, outfielder Jasson Dominguez is one of the organization’s most highly regarded young players.
Since making his big league debut in 2023, Dominguez has played in 149 MLB games so far. However, he has struggled to truly establish himself as an everyday player for the team.
Speaking about Dominguez’s struggles on Thursday’s episode of “The Show,” insider Joel Sherman of the New York Post identified one major factor that he thinks could be weighing the young slugger down.
“Jasson Dominguez signed in 2019. He got almost the entire Yankees international bonus (allotment) that year, $5.1 million out of $5.4 million. It was the most they had ever given to an international free agent out of Latin America. He was nicknamed ‘The Martian’ because he supposedly had otherworldly skills at such a young age. He had comparisons to great players. I think all of that was very, very bad for Jasson Dominguez. I think Jasson Dominguez probably has a chance to be a very good baseball player. He has real power, that hasn’t fully manifested in the major leagues, we’ve seen it. He has real speed, which we have seen manifest to some degree, he stole 23 bases last year. He has a really good hitting eye from both sides of the plate,” Sherman said (Timestamp: 0:49).
“What doesn’t he have? Even though he is a natural right-handed hitter, he has not hit well from the right side against lefty pitching, and his defense isn’t very good. You know, he started in center field in the minors, he moved to left in the majors, and he does not show good instinct for playing the outfield. But is there a 20 homer, 20 steal guy who could get to somewhere near major league average? I don’t think that’s an impossible outcome. If Jasson Dominguez had never been nicknamed ‘The Martian’ and had signed for, say, $1.5 million or $2 million, as just a decent prospect out of his home country, the Dominican Republic, you would say that’s a pretty good signing. So I think that the against expectations, he is always going to struggle. But of being a good player, there is a real chance of it.”
Insider Lays Out Best Course Of Action For Jasson Dominguez Ahead Of Uncertain 2026 Season
Heading into the 2026 season, Jasson Dominguez appears to be surplus to requirements in the outfield, as the Yankees retained the services of Cody Bellinger and Trent Grisham over the winter.
This uncertainty has naturally led to plenty of speculation regarding Dominguez’s future.
During Friday’s episode of “The Show,” insider Joel Sherman of the New York Post shared his view on the best course of action for Jasson Dominguez heading into the new campaign.
“There was a lot of bemoaning of, ‘Once the Yankees got Trent Grisham, what does that mean for Jasson Dominguez? He’s being blocked,’ et cetera. Let’s remember, Jasson Dominguez was the everyday left fielder for the Yankees last season, and his at-bats began to go away in the last few months, for the most fair market reason possible, he was outplayed by Trent Grisham. Grisham played great, and Dominguez continued to struggle. He’s a switch-hitter who struggled against lefty pitching as a right-hander. Even if he got a little better in left field, it was still below average,” Sherman said (5:47).
“These are the Yankees, the Yankees got to win. I’m here to say that Dominguez will not be killed by going to the minor leagues, and that he will get an opportunity this year. Grisham is a guy who consistently has hamstring injuries. Cody Bellinger’s had some chronic back stuff. As we know, it would be shocking if Giancarlo Stanton had an injury-less stint during the year. At this point, it’s incumbent on Jasson Dominguez to go to the minor leagues at age 23, a year and a half younger than Spencer Jones, who has zero major league at-bats. Go to the minor leagues, outplay Spencer Jones. So when the call comes, and the call will come, it will be for him,” he added.
Jasson Dominguez finished the 2025 season with a .257 batting average, 10 home runs, and 47 RBIs. Yankees fans will hope to see the youngster improve on those numbers in 2026.
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