On Feb. 7, he'll turn 20, still below beer age, even if he seems older than your dustiest decanter of Glenlivet. Born to a Yank fan, named after Jason Giambi, assigned to a trainer at puberty - Dominguez at age 16 signed the largest bonus in baseball history - $5.1 million. That year, 2019, he almost singlehandedly drained the Yankees' international spending pool of $5.4 million.
Ever since, we've watched him with intermittent senses of hope, cynicism, intrigue and dread. Twice, he's ranked No. 1 on the Yank prospect list. (He's now 2nd, 3rd or 4th, depending on the site.) Twice, he appeared in Futures Games, once before he'd even played a year in the minors. He's been hyped in videos and compared - ridiculously, we know - to Mickey Mantle and Mike Trout. Damn, he's done everything but date Pete Davidson.
And this is the year we open the package and see what's inside.
This season, Dominguez will either start busting down fences on a march to the majors - or start going the way of Jose Tabata, Jackson Melian, Jesus Montero, Dermis Garcia and all the others who make cameo appearances in our heads at 2 a.m., as the test pattern flickers on YES.
Dominguez will probably start 2023 where he left off last fall: Somerset, the Double A crossroads, where careers either take off or stall on the runway. Last year, he rose through three levels, with most of his time at High Single A Hudson Valley, where he hit .306 with 6 HRs. (Overall, he hit .273 with 16 HRs and 37 stolen bases. He also fanned 128 times in 451 ABs.)
So... here we go. The fulcrum year. Shit or get off. And over the next six weeks, the new Yankee GM front four - Cashman, Sabean, Minaya and Hendry - have an unbridled glimpse into the Martian's skill set and makeup. Nobody else in baseball will have the access they have into his physical talent and mental discipline. This is the decision they have been gathered to make.
The Yanks can go all-in - declare him untouchable in trades - or quietly bundle him into a package deal, perhaps for the likes of Pittsburgh CF Brian Reynolds.
This is the year, and now is the time. If the GMs believe the Martian is for real, even if he's not Mike or Mickey, they must hold the line.
If they privately think he's overrated, it's time to cut him loose. The Yankees will never have a better opportunity to salvage their $5.1 million investment.
Apparently, the Pirates want prime meat for Reynolds, who would fill the Yankee sinkhole in LF. That probably means Dominguez, plus another top prospect and a few lottery tickets.
So... keep the Martian? Or make the deal? The lady or the tiger?
It's no wonder Brian Cashman wants other voices in the room. After all these years, after so many ups and downs, this might just be the decision on which his career is someday weighed. Crazy, eh? Interplanetary.
Posts
12 comments:
This guy will be 30 before he makes the team. If he is the make or break piece in a good deal (not for some Donaldson type) then he is gone.
Who could we get if we put Gleyber and the Martian together in a deal? God? St. Vilnius? Somebody...who can hopefully play left field.
Since when does Cashman ever make a timely decision on a judgment call? He'll be at least 24 before they even think about calling him up to the majors. So 2023 is not really any kind of crossroads. It's 2027 or even later.
I have a hard time seeing this kid as a CF. Have you seen pics of this guy? He has arms and legs like tree trunks. And my first thought was that this looks like a catcher body type. Lo and behold, according to wikipedia, he was a catcher but they converted him to CF. (Probably because his catching skills sucked.) If he makes the majors, I'd say he'll be a LF. Now, if Cashman had any sense, this kid would come up either this year or the year after. By age 21, the talent evaluators should know whether this kid is for real or another dud.
I really fear the Yankee coaching though. The coaching in this franchise seems to turn everything that is gold into shit. They don't stress any fundamentals. They only try to maximize exit velocity and optimize launch angle. Rocket scientists, trying to play a kid's game. And you get results typical of science nerds on the athletic field.
I have seen Jasson play for the Hudson Valley Renegades.
Granted, I only saw one game but...
There were two things that stood out in my mind.
1) The Good - Insane Power
Batting right handed he pulled a ball that left the stadium and reached the tree line. It was foul. It had to of traveled over 550 feet. He crushed it. Didn't even swing that hard.
Batting left handed he put two almost out to right/center.
The kid can hit. Also, didn't really chase. Good composure overall.
2) The Bad
I noticed on balls hit to left/center and right/center he yielded to the other outfielders. Normally those balls belonged to he center fielder.
I asked the people behind me, who were season ticket holders, what was up with that and they replied, "He doesn't take great routes so they have the other guys cover for him. He's not a good Centerfielder."
Uh oh... That said, he is young. He could learn how to play CF better but as Hammer just pointed out, he probably belongs in LF.
--
So, Do I trade him in a package for Reynolds?
PRO KEEP
a) Jasson is a switch hitting outfielder with power.
b) I didn't see his arm but I'll assume he's got the tool.
c) I'd like the Yankees to get Reynolds because he seems adequate. By adequate I mean good. I don't think he is worth some insane package
PRO TRADE
a) He's NOT a Centerfielder.
b) Jasson isn't Mike Trout. He isn't Mickey Mantle. He might not even be Jasson Dominquez.
b) He's not a sure thing.
Because...
Hammer is correct. We screw prospects up - Big Time.
CONCLUSION
Give him the year.
As El Duque inferred, they should let Minya and Sabean do a deep dive (on the whole system) and then recommend.
Let's face it. There will always be Reynolds type guys available, particularly if you want to over pay.
There may be only one Martian.
Plus every year we throw another "can't miss guy" up the flagpole and see who salutes. Kevin Alcantara anyone? He's got to be at least 17 by now.
Still believe that this young, unformed prospect should be allowed to develop at his own rate. Yes- the team’s inept coaching and player development (no doubt dictated from up high) gives one pause. I’m not saying that JD should be untouchable, but the team must tread lightly with any potential deal. For example, it would be very shortsighted to overpay for Reynolds in a deal that would include JD with one of our top 3 along with secondary pieces. And the Pirates wouldn’t even settle for that! All this Reynolds’s Rap is meaningless anyway, even his moderate salary would put the team over the next payroll tax threshold, and the team has already admitted they won’t do that. So - JD stays at Somerset, and your LF-ers will be a combination of Hicks/Cabrera/Florial. At least we’ll have plenty to complain about, not that that is ever a worry here.
Dominguez has to show that he can compete at Sommerset and then they will move him up. Lots of top notch prospects, never make it.
The Yankees would be insane to trade JD at this point. Especially for Reynolds who is a slightly above average player. They could include Gleyber and one of the highly touted Oswaldos plus perhaps a decent AAA pitcher. That should be plenty for him. Currently, there seems to be no takers for the Pirates outfielder....at least at a reasonable price. As the 2023 season progresses, Pittsburgh will come to their senses and lower their ridiculous asking price.
Here's my prediction, write it down: JD will hit so well at Somerset and then Scranton that they will be forced to bring him up this year or the beginning of next year. He doesn't have to be another Mickey or Mike. Just another Charlie Keller or Hideki Matsui. That works fine.
1B - Rizzo for two years, maybe three, Wells should be ready by then
2B - Torres (he's not horrible)
SS - Peraza until Volpe is ready
3B - black hole until Volpe comes up, then Peraza
RF - yep
CF - re-sign Sir Boot
LF - black hole until Dominguez comes up (2024?)
C - black hole unless Wells sticks
I don't think Cashstrapped has the sack-weight to roll out the young guys, especially with all the money owed to Jackie and Stopgap, but it's what I'd like to see this year and next.
I hate to point this out again, but it just doesn't matter. Not this year. We'll be fielding basically the same team we had last year, plus Rodon. Some bullpen tinkering that will end up a wash.
Is another "ace" enough to put us over the top? Doubt it. Josh at third, some mix of IKF and an Oswald at short, DJ and Gleyber at second, Rizzo at first. Oswald and Hicks in left. Etc.
A playoff team. Not a championship team.
Same shit, different year.
I remove my comment because it had 14 typos and three non sequiturs. so I'll try again.
JM is right. The Yankees are building a team of old, quality veterans. Judge, the best of them, is 30 and a quality veteran. They will not promote the Martian , even if he hits .400 at Somerset.
They also will not have a team with six quality veterans and three high ceiling rookies.
So they might as well trade the Martian before the world discovers, " he ain't no Mickey Mantle." They can trade Volpe, too. He wont get to play with Kiner Falafel at SS. And the minute Quality Veteran DJ stubs his toe, we are back with Josh Donaldson at third base.
And whatever moves they make, they are not bringing home the trophy.
TGHe Yankees have done in this off season what they have done forever year this century; Lured some over priced guys, whose best days are long gone, to wear the pinstripes. It is comical.
Old and dumb.
Great post, Duque, one of your best—I loved the Pete Davidson joke, and the bit about old prospects flickering through our minds by the YES test patterns. And great scouting report, Doug!
I know I'm very late to this discussion—maybe too late, as the Pirates are now saying they won't move Reynolds until the trade deadline. But here's my two cents:
If Reynolds really were the one piece needed to get to the Series, I'd say, make the deal. There is no indication that Dominguez is ever going to be any better.
BUT...he's NOT that last piece. The Yanks may think they still have a window open for The Dynasty What Never Was. They don't. Cooperstown Cashman finally slammed it shut with his disastrous trades over the last couple years, Gallo, the Left Side Lumpers, and the Deadline Disaster.
This Yankees team will not win, cannot win—and I'd have said that even before the great Frankie Montas went down. So...KEEP THE KID!
Let's see the Martian develop. Or not. Either way, it'll be fun. And maybe, just maybe, if Judge can last and they can develop that kid Jones they just drafted...
And so we beat on, boats against the current...
Post a Comment