After a few obscure weeks in June and July, the New York Yankees‘ lineup finally appears to be turning a corner. As of Tuesday morning, the Bombers lead the league in wRC+ at 119. Yes, much of that is thanks to Aaron Judge and Juan Soto, but the rest of the supporting cast has been playing much better as of late.
Still, there are still ways to make the offense better and more consistent. At the moment, Giancarlo Stanton, Jazz Chisholm Jr., Gleyber Torres, and Austin Wells are playing well, while Anthony Volpe has started to come around, too. Outfielder Alex Verdugo has six hits in his last three games but experienced one of the longest, ugliest slumps you’ll ever see prior to that positive stretch.
If the Yankees want to increase their ceiling, they need to seriously consider calling up Jasson Dominguez from Triple-A. The Martian is fully recovered from the Tommy John surgery he underwent last September and the oblique strain that recently interrupted his rehab stint a few weeks ago.
The Martian can help the Yankees down the stretch
He has managed to increase his production, and his line for the Scranton Wilkes-Barre RailRiders is now a robust .305/.360/.453 with four home runs, 13 stolen bases, and a 112 wRC+. Those numbers put him in consideration for a call-up if the Yankees are brave enough to reduce Verdugo’s at-bats.
What Dominguez has done in recent games is nothing short of amazing. Consider, for example, his performance in his last 10 games dating back to August 14.
Over that span, the outfielder is hitting an incredible .415/.478/.610 with a 1.088 OPS, two doubles, two home runs, 10 runs, six RBI, nine (!) stolen bases, and a 187 wRC+.
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Dominguez has a very good chance of representing a spark for the 2024 Yankees in September and, potentially, in October. He can hit for power, he can run like the wind, and he is willing to take a walk. Yes, he will strike out, too, but his upside is much greater than Verdugo’s, and the Yanks know it.