Heaney splits, Boone waits, and the Martian falls to Earth

1.  Andrew Heaney - and his 7.23 ERA - have declared free agency. Considering that the Yankees, before the playoffs, cut him like a plate of bad clams, he's probably closed his library card and is gone for good. (As is Janson Junk, whom we gave up for him.) 

Heaney's only 30, and he's a lefty, so some GM will take a flier on him. Meanwhile, he'll remain a hairy Yank - one who didn't stay long enough to shave for his official photo. Good luck, Andrew. 

2. Aaron Boone awaits judgment. The Yankee brain trust has yet to call its annual "End-of-Season-Following-Another-Debacle" news conference, where Hal Steinbrenner, the Clown Prince of Frugality, will render his Hammurobi-like verdict.

Unlike in a jury trial, where an extended silence suggests a deadlock, I believe the longer Food Stamps Hal sits on the can, the more Boonie will sweat. It means they're looking at alternatives. If, say, by Tuesday, Hal has not publicly declared allegiance to Boonie, something's up. 

I'm going to anger some of you and state that I personally don't care if Boone stays or goes. He is a nice man, who doesn't need to be tortured, and we could do much worse. (Every owner has a Bobby Valentine inside him, waiting to take over.) And if Brian Cashman keeps calling the shots - as I believe happened in 2021 - it doesn't matter who stands in the dugout. The 2021 Yankees were a team without a soul, and that comes from management-by-algorithm.  

3. For two years now, the Death Barge has relentlessly hyped Jasson Dominiquez, aka "The Martian," a CF prospect they signed at age 16 for $5 million, and whom they gleefully compared to Mickey Mantle and Mike Trout. What a crock. He made the Baseball America Top 100 prospects list without playing a game. He made the Futures Game without having recorded a hit at Single A. 

Well, BA recently named its top prospects for the Single A Southeastern League and Dominiquez is - gulp, sigh - 7th. (That's right, seventh.) 

I must note that Dominiquez is only 18 and these rankings are bullshit. Still, the bloom began to fade as soon as he played real games. The latest line is that he's looking a bit too stocky to play CF. Often, such critiques suggest we're looking at a future 1B. But he's 5'10", so...

Let's hope Dominiquez explodes next year. If he doesn't - if he's another Jackson Melian - his legacy will have been to provide cover so Cashman could trade 10 prospects - Janson Junk among them - to chase an ill-fated wild card birth. While draining the farm system, he could assure us that our future superstar prospect was staying.

Oh, one other thing: BA ranked our Anthony Volpe No. 1 in the Single A SE League. So there's that. Now, will they sign Trevor Story and eliminate the need for a SS?