Yankees option Domínguez to Triple-A

The New York Yankees optioned outfielder Jasson Domínguez to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to begin the season.

Domínguez started in left field for the Yankees on Opening Day last year and spent all of 2025 in the majors. He hit .257/.331/.388 with 10 homers, 47 RBIs, and 23 steals over 429 plate appearances in 2025, his first full season in the majors.

However, the switch-hitter's second-half struggles eventually led New York to primarily use him as a pinch-runner and defensive replacement down the stretch. Domínguez made just one appearance in the 2025 playoffs, serving as a pinch-hitter late in Game 4 of the ALDS.

Despite a strong spring in which the 23-year-old hit .325/.378/.600 with three homers and 10 RBIs over 14 Grapefruit League games, Domínguez - who had two minor-league options remaining - couldn't secure a spot in a crowded Yankees' outfield. The returns of Cody Bellinger and Trent Grisham helped squeeze him out of an everyday spot.

New York will presumably roll with Bellinger in left field every day and Grisham manning center to open the season. The left-handed hitting Grisham could also form part of a center-field platoon, potentially with veteran Randal Grichuk, who's in camp as a non-roster invitee.

Domínguez will presumably get everyday at-bats in Scranton, where he'll play alongside fellow young outfielder Spencer Jones and stay ready for a call-up.

Originally signed by New York out of the Dominican Republic in 2019, Domínguez was once considered the jewel of the Yankees' farm system and a potential future cornerstone in the outfield. The switch-hitter owns a lifetime .724 OPS across 149 big-league games since 2023.

The Yankees also optioned right-handers Kervin Castro and Yerry de los Santos to Triple-A on Friday. Catchers Payton Henry and Ali Sánchez, as well as outfielder Kenedy Corona, were reassigned to minor-league camp.