Yankees make necessary decision on Jasson Dominguez

Jasson Dominguez was expected to be the future for the New York Yankees in the outfield. He is no longer a part of the present.

The Yankees announced on Friday that Dominguez was optioned to Triple-A as part of a series of roster moves. Pitchers Kevin Castro and Yerry de los Santos were also optioned to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

Dominguez had been viewed as one of the top prospects in baseball and was a consensus top-100 prospect four times between 2020 and 2024. He was considered to be a potential five-tool player with impressive power from both sides of the plate, someone who could be a part of the Yankees outfield into the next decade.

New York Yankees outfielder Jasson Dominguez still has time to live up to his potential

Dominguez looked like a future star during his brief time with the Yankees in 2023. He had eight hits, with four homers and a double, in 33 plate appearances before undergoing surgery for a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow. Although he received another cameo in 2024 once he was ready to play, Dominguez was unable to replicate his initial success.

Those struggles continued through 2025. His bat went ice-cold in the second half, losing playing time as Cody Bellinger and Giancarlo Stanton received more action in the outfield. Dominguez ended his rookie season with a respectable .257/.331/.388 batting line over his 429 plate appearances, hitting 10 homers and 18 doubles while stealing 23 bases.

With Bellinger, Trent Grisham and Aaron Judge in the outfield, the Yankees could not guarantee consistent playing time for Dominguez. Sending Dominguez back to Triple-A would get him in the lineup on a consistent basis, with a return to New York a probability if any of the starting outfielders spend time on the Injured List.

At 23 years old, it is also possible that Dominguez still needs time to develop as a player. He is young enough that he could still become the type of player expected to be. It just may take longer than expected for that to happen.