It may have taken being in last place and below .500 in September for the New York Yankees to commit fully to a youth movement. However, the recent release of veterans Josh Donaldson and Harrison Bader marks a change in Yankee thinking. Top outfield prospect Jasson Dominguez is promoted to the majors. So, too, Catching prospect Austin Wells. They join the expanding list of recently announced prospects, including Oswald Peraza, Oswaldo Cabrera, and Everson Pereira. They are joining the established red-hot Rookie Anthony Volpe. The Yankees are fully embracing a Youth movement.
It’s been a frustrating season in the Bronx, packed with an array of dysfunction and mismanagement from their Baseball Ops and exacerbated by a host of injuries to key players. Furthermore, the Yankees ownership did not want to end their remarkable run of almost 30 years without a losing season, so they continued to hope their veterans could keep them competitive. This plan failed and is the right pivot for the Front Office. This allows the Yankees to see their prospects firsthand hand, to learn about them, and to see which ones will be part of the extensive league roster in 2024 and beyond.
‘The Martian’ has landed in the Bronx.
Jason Dominguez, nicknamed ‘The Martian,’ is among the Yankee’s most-hyped prospects due to his explosiveness. Blessed with a ton of power and speed, the 20-year-old Switch-Hitting prospect has catapulted through the ranks to make it to the bigs this year. After considerable spring training, he started this year in AA. It took a little time for him to get comfortable in this setting- hitting .254, but with a very solid .414 slug. He was combined with 15 homers, 19 doubles, and 66 RBIs.
After earning a further promotion, he crushed AAA hitting in his nine games there. He had a 3-hit debut, then overall hit for a .419 average, a .581 slug, and 1.095 ops. Including twice the walks to strikeouts. Simply monstrous numbers over that span. Not to mention a combined 40 stolen bases in the minors this year. It will be a potentially exciting time in the Bronx to see how he develops over the next few weeks.
I fully expect him to crush fastballs, which he has been doing in the minors. It will be interesting to see how he handles the sustained amount of breaking balls he will likely face in the majors. This was something Volpe has had to adjust to over the course of this season.
Brought up through the minors as a Center Fielder, it will be worth watching how the Yankees view him there long-term. His small, 5’9, sturdy frame may be better suited over Left, but I expect him to play CF with Pereira in Left. He’s certainly athletic enough to handle either position.
Austin Wells
The Yankees are taking advantage of the expanding rosters in September by calling up Catching prospect Austin Wells. The 24-year-old is getting his first taste of big-league action. He is widely considered to have a league-ready bat. However, defensively, he still has a ways to go. If he can handle catching potential CY Young winner Gerrit Cole, this will aid his development.
Wells had a more decisive year last year in the minors with an impressive .895 OPS, .270 BA, and 20 home runs. So far this year, his average and OPS have dipped to .240 and .775, respectively. However, the 17 homers and 72 RBIs are still strong. A further promotion may boost his numbers further, as is the case with some prospects.
Wells has a chance of breaking through for a few reasons-
1: He bats from the left side. The Yankees’ almost all-right-handed lineup needs a threat from the left side.
2: The Yankees Catching situation is a weakness. Ben Rortvedt, acquired alongside Josh Donaldson in that infamously lousy trade, is batting an unsightly .113. Kyle Higashioka is an excellent backup. He caught Domingo German‘s perfect game earlier this year and provided ten home runs. He is not an everyday catcher, however. Jose Trevino is a long-term injury casualty. He made the All-Star team last year due to his Platinum glove defense. However, his bat dropped considerably before his injury this year, batting just .210 with four home runs. Again, he’s an excellent platoon Catcher but needs the bat to play daily.
This gives Wells a golden opportunity to stake his significant league-level claim. Some say he’s better suited to playing first base at the Major leagues, as he could be a better defensive catcher. Aaron Boone may give him some reps at First, as the Yankees only have DJ LeMahieu to play in Anthony Rizzo‘s absence.
Anthony Volpe is proving the Yankees right.
Volpe has turned out to have a magnificent second half of the year in his rookie season. He is the first Yankee rookie in history to have a 20-homer, 20-stolen base season.
He hit a clutch 3-run home run in the ninth against the Tigers Thursday before the team eventually succumbed to defeat. Over his last five games, Volpe has three homers and 6bris and was in blistering form throughout August. This further exemplifies why allowing rookies to grow and adjust to Major League hitting is essential. He’s seeing the ball better than ever due to his patience and work ethic. Not just offensively, but his defensive numbers are all among the AL leaders also. Volpe now merits Rookie of the Year consideration.
Donaldson and Bader are gone as the Yankees fully embrace the Youth Movement.
The final nail in the coffin of Brian Cashman’s disastrous trade was sealed, as Josh Donaldson was released earlier this week.
Donaldson batted an incredibly disappointing .142 this year and spent much of this season on the 60-day IL. While in fairness, he was solid defensively, offensively, he was utterly lost. The 37-year-old whom Cashman took on $50 million over two seasons, including an $8 million buyout this year, never settled in New York.
After earning a one-game suspension for a comment made to Tim Anderson last year, he was more of a distraction than a force of positivity. It is unsurprising that Minnesota was so willing to move him. Cashman obliged, and it almost certainly set this team back. Isiah Kiner-Falefa has been the best part of the trade- but he failed at shortstop last year and is batting .240 with six home runs as a utility outfielder this year. Ben Rortvedt has yet to make any name for himself to date. Gary Sanchez has had a new lease on life since the trade.
Reviews on the Harrison Bader trade are far more mixed. On one hand, Bader played a big part in the Yankees defeating the Guardians in the playoffs last year. Bader’s energy and sensational range in the Center were evident.
On the other hand, he had multiple IL stints this year already and had a well-below-league average of .238 BA and 75 WRC+. His defensive star strengths have yet to make up for such a poor bat, combined with the fact that Jordan Montgomery has excelled since the trade, first with St Louis and now even better in Texas. Usually, the rule isn’t to trade quality starting pitching for injured outfielders.
Bader is a quality teammate with a skillset better utilized for a contending team. He should do well in Cincinnati, as they still have a shot at making the playoffs.
The Front Office finally picked a direction by fully embracing a youth movement by releasing these veterans. The Yankees can learn much about what they have moving forward by giving the prospects a look.
Yankees are fully embracing a Youth movement.
Rightfully, the Yankees have turned their whole attention to 2024 and beyond. Starting in Houston Friday night, the Yanks could have half of their lineup made up of prospects each night. This will no doubt make the fanbase excited and give fans a reason to tune in for the rest of the season despite being in last place.
This is where the Yankees can learn from what they have. They needed to learn something from giving extended at-bats to the Jake Bauers and Billy McKinney‘s of this world. These guys were never part of the future. By embracing this direction, they can adequately plan for 2024. The Yankees will only go for a partial rebuild. Not with Gerrit Cole and Aaron Judge on their books and in their primes. They can, however, decide which prospects are ready to help now and next year. While also being blessed with the financial prowess to add in Free Agency for areas of need in the offseason. Whether the Front Office makes the right decisions from here on out is to be determined. Nevertheless, by fully embracing a youth movement, the Yankees show they have a vision for now, next year, and beyond. This can only be beneficial moving forward.
Main Photo Credits: Sal DiMaggio / USA TODAY NETWORK
