The New York Yankees are hoping Jasson Dominguez moves into left field and makes it his own. They are also hoping sandwiching his locker in between former Rookies of the Year Aaron Judge and Cody Bellinger will bring some good fortune to their top prospect.
Dominguez told MLB.com he was surprised by his new locker location. Judge said Dominguez just needs to be himself, do what he does best, and let the chips fall where they may.
“We were joking with him, like, ‘Hey, you’ve got two Rookies of the Year right next to you. This is going to be your year.’ You go out there and do your thing, something special is going to happen,” said Judge.
It’s already started.
On Monday, Dominguez must have gotten settled into his new surroundings as he belted a home run off of Carlos Rodon. It was not a bad way to start the spring.
“The pressure is there, but I feel like it’s a good thing to have, because is to get ready to be the player that everyone expects me to be,” Dominguez said. “There’s definitely adjustments that I had to make, and I was working on that this offseason. This season is going to be better.
Dominguez got a second taste of life in the big leagues last season when he played in 18 games for the Pinstripes. In 67 plate appearances he had 10 hits with two home runs. He also had four RBI. He will have a chance to be the regular, every-day left fielder when camp breaks and the team travels north for the summer.
Last season’s occupant in left field, Alex Verdugo, is gone and there is no one in Dominguez’s path to starting, but himself.
Utility outfielder Trent Grisham batted .190 last season and is more of a pure center fielder. Grisham belted nine home runs and had 31 RBI.
With Dominguez projected to be the starter in left, the other outfield positions will be taken by Bellinger in center and Judge in right.
However, with designated hitter Giancarlo Stanton out with tendinitis in both of his elbows, Judge is anticipated to slide into the DH position, which could open a spot in the outfield for Grisham, who is day-to-day, himself, with a left hamstring injury he sustained a few weeks ago.
Yankees’ manager Aaron Boone said Grisham was not too far behind and should be ready to compete soon. Grisham should get plenty of innings with Stanton likely to miss all of spring training. The Associated Press reported on Sunday, Stanton is uncertain for Opening Day.
