The New York Yankees are giving Jasson Dominguez another chance, and the 23-year-old will really have to run away with that. Dominguez, who was optioned to Triple-A at the beginning of the year, is in one of the more interesting spots around Major League Baseball.
He, unfortunately, was sent down due to not playing too well over the past few seasons, with many questioning whether he can be the guy that the Yankees were expecting him to be about five-plus years ago.
This is obviously a much different time, but Dominguez has yet to show that he can be the player that the Yankees were really hoping for.
Speaking to reporters, it's important that it sounds like Dominguez understands what he went through and how he needs to improve. He later added that it wasn't easy to be sent down, but that it is very important for him to make the most of this opportunity.
“Down there in Triple-A, that’s what you work for,” Dominguez said, per the NY Post. “You want to get back to the majors. Now that I’m here, trying to enjoy my time and help the team.”
Manager Aaron Boone had some comments about Dominguez, adding that he did a really good job at Triple-A of staying level-headed and doing what was needed to take care of business. Dominguez could have either viewed this as a dying point in his career or made the most of it, and it sounds like he did what was needed for the Yankees to trust him and bring him back up, whether that's for a few weeks or for the remainder of the campaign.
“Phenomenal,” Boone said. “He deserves a lot of credit. I think one thing the last four months has revealed is Jasson Domínguez’s character. Because when we did some of the things we did this winter, there was all the talk and writing on the wall maybe that he was going to potentially start in Triple-A. All he did was come and work. Showed up early to spring training ready to go, had a good spring and then has gone down to Triple-A.
“As a young player, when you’ve been here and had some success at the big league level and you got to go back, a lot of times you see guys struggle and not do well or pout a little bit. He hasn’t done any of that. He’s worked hard, he’s performing and he deserves to be here right now.”