The New York Yankees reportedly signed 16-year-old outfield prospect Jasson Dominguez as the international signing period began Tuesday, sources told ESPN. The deal includes a signing bonus worth $5.1 million.
New York spent nearly all of its international bonus pool money to land Dominguez. The club had just under $5.4 million available.
The switch-hitting Dominguez, nicknamed "The Martian," has been championed as an out-of-this-world talent. He projects as a potential five-tool player in the same mold as a certain former AL MVP.
"Jasson has a game that's very much like Mike Trout - except he's a switch-hitter," Ivan Noboa, Dominguez's trainer in the Dominican Republic, told ESPN's Jeff Passan. "It's a hard name for me to say because it's really high expectations for a 16-year-old. But what Jasson is, we all know. I know it's a little bit unfair to put them next to each other. It's a heavy weight to carry. But if someone can do it, it's him."
A major-league general manager also compared Dominguez to Trout, with another likening him to NFL running back Maurice Jones-Drew. One team's international scouting director considers him a shorter Mickey Mantle.
Dominguez is ranked as the top prospect available in the 2019 international signing pool by both FanGraphs and MLB Pipeline.
(Video courtesy: FanGraphs)
The Texas Rangers, Tampa Bay Rays, St. Louis Cardinals, and Los Angeles Angels reportedly showed interest in signing Dominguez before the Yankees emerged as the front-runner to land the blooming phenom.
Dominguez will not play in the Yankees' system until next year.
He was not the only international prospect to receive a signing bonus in the $5-million range. The Oakland Athletics signed shortstop Robert Puason to a comparable deal Tuesday, a source tells Jesse Sanchez of MLB.com.
