New York Yankees outfielder Jasson Dominguez continues to raise concerns about his future.
A few years ago, Jasson Dominguez was viewed as an untouchable commodity within the New York Yankees' system. The switch-hitting extraordinaire was affectionately dubbed "The Martian" for his otherworldly talents and was even garnering comparisons to Mickey Mantle.
But after seeing Dominguez on the major-league level, some are now wondering whether or not he legitimately has a future with the Yankees.
Dominguez slashed .257/.331/.388 with 10 home runs and 47 RBI over 429 plate appearances in 2025. As if that weren't underwhelming enough, Dominguez played horrific defense in left field.
Remember those "five-tool" scouting reports? Yeah. We can probably throw those down the trash chute now, and if we are being perfectly honest, we began hearing that Dominguez probably wouldn't be able to stick in center field toward the end of his minor-league tenure.
It looks like he might not be able to stick in left, either.
The Yankees wanted Dominguez to play Winter Ball in the Dominican League to hone his skills and as he prepares for a potentially larger role in 2026, but the 22-year-old is slashing just .184/.304/.263 with no homers through 11 games.
Had Dominguez not struggled so mightily in 2025 that he was benched during the latter stages of the campaign, this wouldn't be such a big deal. It also wouldn't be too significant if we knew Cody Bellinger were returning next spring.
New York Yankees outfielder Jasson Dominguez. Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images.But Dominguez was benched down the stretch, and there is absolutely no guarantee that Bellinger re-signs with New York in free agency.
Plus, Dominguez isn't exactly helping his trade value by posting a .568 OPS for Leones del Esondido (by the way, shout out to former Yankees prospect Zoilo Almonte, who is now 36 years old and is a teammate of Dominguez this winter).
Dominguez is obviously still very young and has plenty of time to improve. He has impressive plate discipline and terrific speed. But the defensive instincts just aren't there, and he doesn't seem to have the type of pop most anticipated, either.
Perhaps it's to be expected considering Dominguez topped out at just 16 long balls in the minors, but the general expectation was that he would develop into a reliable power hitter.
Taking everything into account, Dominguez has been a significant disappointment thus far in the early stages of his big-league career. There really is no way around it.
The Dominican native posted a .618 OPS during the second half of 2025, homering just four times after May. He also amassed a grand total of only 13 extra-base hits throughout that time, and on the year as a whole, Dominguez slashed a meager .204/.279/.290 against lefties.
It's too soon to label Dominguez a bust, but it's also fair to say that time is running out for the young outfielder in terms of establishing himself as a big piece of the Yankees' future. Not only that, but his trade value is decreasing throughout the process.