Yankees' Backup Outfield Plan In Motion

Winter is coming. So is a possible realignment of the New York Yankees' outfield.

Both Cody Bellinger and Trent Grisham are free agents, although the Yankees did extend the qualifying offer to the latter.

Should one or both of them walk, it's possible New York jumps into the mix for Chicago Cubs outfielder Kyle Tucker, who's considered the best all-around player on the free-agent market.

But if general manager Brian Cashman doesn't want to drop $400 million for Tucker, he has a couple of viable in-house options: Jasson Dominguez and Spencer Jones.

"(F)or the time being, the Yankees want Dominguez and Jones spending the winter preparing for a possible big-league starting job next season," NJ.com's Randy Miller reports.

“Jasson Domínguez is going to play winter ball,” Cashman said, according to Miller. “Spencer Jones has been working out at Yankee Stadium and eventually he’ll be heading to Tampa after he takes a break. He’ll be heading to Tampa working out down there and hit the ground running heading into spring training. Those guys all have exciting upside."

That said, Cashman hasn't closed the door on running it back next season with the 2025 outfield configuration.

“We already know what Grisham and Bellinger are capable of," Cashman said, per Miller. "It’s very early in the process. I don’t know where any of it is going to take us. We could lose both Grisham and Bellinger to free agency and then that puts a lot more stress and pressure on those internal options."

“If one of those guys comes back, it creates nice competition. If both of those guys come back, then maybe it creates trade flexibility. I just don’t know how this stuff is going to play out. I guess stay tuned,” Cashman added.

The Yankees selected Jones in the first round of the 2022 MLB Draft. In his three minor-league seasons, Jones has grown into a fearsome power hitter. He currently ranks as the Yankees' No. 4 prospect according to MLB Pipeline.

The 24-year-old enjoyed a breakout 2025 campaign which included 16 home runs in 49 games at Double-A Somerset, followed by 19 home runs in 67 games with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

As for Dominguez, the Yankees' former top prospect hit. 257 with 10 home runs and 23 stolen bases in 123 games this year.

Clearly, Cashman and the Yankees have plenty of options. As usual, it will come down to money and how much is too much for any of the outfielders available on the open market.

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