Why the Yankees gave Jasson Domínguez a special locker inside their clubhouse

New York Times

17-02-2025

TAMPA, Fla. — When Jasson Domínguez first entered the New York Yankees' spring-training clubhouse this offseason, he immediately noticed his locker was sandwiched between two MVP winners. Domínguez has prime real estate in the back right corner that's usually reserved for the club's most prominent position players, a telltale sign of how much the Yankees believe in the 22-year-old's future.
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On Domínguez's left inside the Yankees' clubhouse is two-time MVP Aaron Judge. On his right is 2019 National League MVP Cody Bellinger. Combined, Judge and Bellinger have 17 years of big-league experience. Both were hyped prospects. In Judge's case, the superstar mightily struggled in his first major-league stint with the Yankees in 2016, striking out in 44 percent of his plate appearances. Judge revamped his swing that offseason, then rebounded to hit 52 home runs and win the American League Rookie of the Year Award. Bellinger debuted with the Los Angeles Dodgers at 21 years old in 2017, hit 39 home runs and won the National League Rookie of the Year Award.
Both players have experiences that can greatly benefit Domínguez. Judge knows what playing with pressure and expectations in New York is like. Bellinger has won a World Series and experienced the lowest of lows two years after winning the MVP: The Dodgers non-tendered him. So, the Yankees decided when laying out the locker assignments that Domínguez should take over where Anthony Rizzo was once stationed.
'I looked in the clubhouse and saw my locker next to Judge and Bellinger, I was kind of surprised,' Domínguez said Monday morning. 'It's a good thing to be in that group and be able to learn from them.'
Jasson Domínguez absolutely hammers one over the wall off Carlos Rodón pic.twitter.com/GibwR1bLSu
— Chris Kirschner (@ChrisKirschner) February 17, 2025
Domínguez is expected to be the Yankees' starting left fielder when the new season opens. He's gotten a crash course on the position this offseason, and he said he's becoming more comfortable reading different angles off the bat. Yankees manager Aaron Boone said he's 'hoping and expecting he's a big part of things this year.' The hopes are so high that he's one of the candidates who could lead off for the Yankees on Opening Day. The Yankees believe in his ability to get on base and be a table-setter for Judge.
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'He's definitely a five-tool player,' Judge said of Domínguez. 'The sky is the limit for him.
'Me and Bellinger were joking with him about, 'Hey, you have two Rookie of the Years right next to you. This is going to be your year. You go out there and do your thing, something special is going to happen.' We're definitely going to be on him and try to be a good resource and just be good mentors to him.'
In the Yankees' first full team workout on Monday, Domínguez clobbered a home run from the right side of the plate off Carlos Rodón. Domínguez turned on a fastball at the top of the zone, which opened the eyes of everyone at George M. Steinbrenner Field because that's his weaker side. Domínguez said he felt 'lost' from the right side of the plate last season; he had a paltry .510 OPS in 65 minor league at-bats from the right side.
Boone said Domínguez is further along in his development from the left side than the right, but he believes he'll have the ability to control the strike zone just as well from the right side as his career advances. He wouldn't commit to playing Domínguez against tough left-handed pitchers just yet, but there's optimism that he will be an impactful player for the Yankees on both sides of the plate.
A look around the Yankees clubhouse pic.twitter.com/wKmB3qIOlc
— Chris Kirschner (@ChrisKirschner) February 13, 2025
'It's live BP, but that's a pretty good pass to show you he's got power right-handed like he does left-handed,' Boone said. 'I think over time, we'll look up and he'll be a guy who's still switch hitting years from now and a factor at switch hitting.'
In 2016, Carlos Beltrán requested Judge's locker should be next to his corner space during spring training. Beltrán, who was 39 at the time, said the reason he wanted Judge next to him was because he knew that he'd eventually become the face of the franchise.
It's too early to know if that distinction will ever come one day for Domínguez, but it's obvious the Yankees hope The Martian's locker is in the back right corner for the next decade-plus.