Jasson Dominguez Opening Day roster noise will only get louder after laser home run
No, Jasson Dominguez should not make the Yankees' Opening Day roster after Harrison Bader's oblique injury. No, Jasson Dominguez isn't ready for the majors after a handful of games at Double-A and a difficult time in the Arizona Fall League.
It's easy to say, but it's harder to believe as The Martian's sterling spring continues.
On Saturday, he took another bite out of the apple with a laser home run over the right-field stands, his fourth of the past two weeks.
The rational brain says that someone who had as much trouble with advanced pitching last October in Arizona can't possibly be ready for an Opening Day MLB start to begin his second full season on American soil. The irrational brain? Nobody hits a baseball like this, and he's done it four times now in just two weeks.
Whenever he is ready, it'll still probably look ... a lot like this. Phillies right-hander Connor Brogdon, a key member of the NL Champions' bullpen, was Dominguez's latest victim.
Yankees top prospect Jasson Dominguez destroys home run vs Phillies
Bader, who called his oblique injury a "punch in the face," pledges to return as soon as possible, but doesn't have a grade for the injury or a timeline for his recovery yet. It could be just a few weeks (Giants OF Mitch Haniger also suffered an oblique issue this week, and Gabe Kapler believes he'll be back for Opening Day). At worst, Bader will probably return towards the beginning of May, without further aggravation.
That means that the 20-year-old Dominguez, in the best-case scenario many fans are envisioning after his latest laser beam exited the ballpark in a blink, would get about 40 games to prove himself before being shipped back to Scranton for further development. If it starts poorly? Well, then Dominguez might be fine, but he also might be Cristian Pache'd, rushed up and damaged beyond repair.
The right answer is absolutely to start Dominguez in the minors, and he's more likely to be demoted on Monday than he is to be seriously considered for the Opening Day roster. It's a shame some fans have turned this into their personal battle, though, because this spring should be seen as nothing but a highly positive showcase. Remember when anonymous scouts told us Dominguez didn't have the hustle necessary to translate his elite skills to the next level and get better? That ... was a lie, and there should be nothing but comfort in that.
Forget the timeline. He's wildly good at baseball. That should be enough.