Jasson Dominguez promotion just started ticking clock on this Yankees veteran

The weekend closed out with a flurry of roster moves as the New York Yankees both cleaned things up around the margins and made some shocking choices. Ryan Weathers came back, Angel Chivilli's IL placement gave Jake Bird a third lease on life, Luis Gil got booted to Scranton, and the stars aligned for Jasson Dominguez, though his call-up wasn't related to the move we all thought was coming.

The thought was that Dominguez would get the call should Giancarlo Stanton end up on the IL. Stanton indicated that his sore calf was already beginning to feel better, but with his history of lower-body injuries (plus, you know, elbows), it's expected that the Yankees will proceed with caution, and a stint on the IL is imminent.

Next, we'll likely see Anthony Volpe make his way back to the Bronx, furthering the shuffle. When the music stops, we'll be very curious to see who ends up without a seat, and there are only two real options: Dominguez or veteran outfielder-turned-automatic-out Randal Grichuk.

The choice should be clear, but we know the Yankees don't always make the obvious move.

Jasson Dominguez still has flaws, but he's a better Yankees' option than Randal Grichuk

There were two reasons why Dominguez was sent down at the end of spring training. First, the young switch-hitter had become such a liability against left-handed pitching that he might as well have never hit right-handed to begin with. Second was the quality, or lack thereof, of his defense in left field.

To the first point, Dominguez has answered the bell down in Scranton. He's only had 18 at-bats against southpaws, but he's slashing .389/.450/.722 with a homer. You'd like to see him keep that up over a larger sample, but he's needed now, and we can only evaluate where he is based on what he's had the opportunity to do.

That line is even better than his cumulative performance at Triple-A, though overall he's still been very impressive by hitting .326/.415/.478 over 92 at-bats. Grichuk, meanwhile, is hitting just .194/.212/.323 with no homers and a 30.3% strikeout rate.

On the other hand, Dominguez's defense has still looked pretty rough at times. Poor routes, dropped fly balls, and a general feeling that he just isn't comfortable have continued. Though sometimes, his athleticism shines through with a highlight reel play.

With that said, if it's defense you want, don't look at Grichuk. He's played just 65 innings in left field and already posted negative-one outs above average. He's been a poor defensive outfielder when he's been out there for the last several years. Could he be better than Dominguez? Sure, but not to the degree that it outweighs everything else the Martian can do.

Dominguez simply provides more. He can hit righties, seems like he can now hit lefties, and brings much more speed to the bases than the 34-year-old veteran does. Grichuk hasn't hit anyone, and the upside is non-existent. Once the other shoe drops, and the Yankees need to make another move, Dominguez should be the one to stay, while Grichuk gets the boot. He was worth a look, but now that we see what little he has left in the tank, it's time to move on.

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