Yankees Urged To Ditch Jasson Domínguez In 1-for-1 Swap For Royals All-Star

It's the time of year when New York Yankees fans think their team can get their hands on just about any star player from another team.

As the signature team in Major League Baseball's biggest market, the Yankees generate a lot of buzz at the trade deadline. And their need for a third baseman has become all-consuming as they've slid further behind the Toronto Blue Jays for first place.

The Kansas City Royals have an All-Star third baseman in Maikel Garcia, one of the breakout stars of the season. And they're under no time pressure whatsoever to trade him, as he won't hit free agency until the end of the 2029 campaign.

However, that won't stop Yankees fans from thinking their team could use him more than the Royals could. And Jim Bowden of The Athletic added fuel to the fire on Friday.

Bowden proposed a mock trade that would swap Garcia straight-up for Yankees outfielder Jasson Domínguez, the team's former number-one prospect who has massive offensive potential, but has had an uneven rookie season, particularly on defense.

"The Royals would get Domínguez and could lock in the rookie as their future left fielder. Domínguez, 22, has slashed .253/.328/.406 with nine homers, 15 doubles and 14 steals (in 16 attempts). He is not fully developed but should eventually be a 20-to-25-homer corner outfielder," wrote Bowden.

"Domínguez, 22, is under team control through 2030. The Yankees could afford to trade him because outfield prospect Spencer Jones is major-league-ready and they would still have Aaron Judge in right, Trent Grisham in center and Cody Bellinger in left."

If we're doing a side-by-side comparison, Garcia has been better than Domínguez this season by a wide margin. He's got 2.8 bWAR to Domínguez's 0.5. He's a better defender at a more premium position, and he's making more consistent hard contact. He's also still only 25 to Domínguez's 22.

Is the greater potential still on Domínguez's side? Perhaps, but he's replaceable on the Yankees' roster. The Royals don't really have a backup plan for losing Garcia, and if Domínguez didn't pan out, they'd be floating upstream without a paddle.

So unless the Royals truly love "The Martian," this feels more like a Yankees fan fiction than a real trade that should happen.

More MLB: Red Sox-Royals Involved In 1-For-1 All-Star Mock Trade From MLB Reporter