Bleeding Yankee Blue: MEET JASSON DOMINGUEZ: "THE NEXT MIKE TROUT"

Thursday, July 4, 2019

MEET JASSON DOMINGUEZ: "THE NEXT MIKE TROUT"

Wow, no pressure or anything with that comparison and yes, there are two "S" in his name. The Yankees just used more than 90% of their International Pool money to sign one guy named Jasson Dominguez out of the Dominican Republic. Just one guy! That is unheard of. That's one hell of an investment.

Who on earth would compare a 16-year old kid to Mike Trout? That's crazy. Well scouts and other baseball officials are singing this kid's praises. Did the Yankees just strike liquid gold with this signing? Or did they put spend too much money on one guy? Time will tell, but a lot of people seem to think that this is money well spent, no matter how risky this move is.

Jeff Passan of ESPN has a great write-up on this HERE. Here are just a few things people are saying:

"I know this sounds crazy, but....he's like Mike Trout. And Trout wasn't close to this good when he was 16," said one general manager.

"Jasson has a game that's very much like Mike Trout -- except he's a switch hitter.I know it's a little unfair to put them next to each other. I've been doing this for a long time, he's the greatest talent I've seen," said Ivan Noboa, Dominguez's trainer.

"He's the best July 2 player I've ever seen," said another international scouting director.

"He's the kind of player that kind of makes the hair on your arm stand up." High praise from Yankees own International scouting Donny Rowland, HERE.

So you get it by now. He may only be a prospect now but people seem to think this kid is the next big thing. That's a lot of weight to carry around for a young kid. It's clear that the Yankees have gone all-in on this kid. The Yankees believe he could be a shortstop, or even a catcher but they believe his future is an outfielder, specifically center field. Dominguez is described as a five-tool player which includes speed, power, hitting for average, fielding and arm strength. His nickname is "The Martian" because of his out-of-this world talent, and even named after former Yankees slugger Jason Giambi. His name and his talent both scream future Yankee icon.

I was surprised to hear the Yankees spend so much money on one prospect, but I dig everyone's enthusiasm about this kid. The Yankees haven't been shy about spending a lot of money in the Dominican Republic and it has paid off so far: Gary Sanchez and Luis Severino were both signed from here as teenagers.I think the Yankees know what they are doing.

Welcome to the Yankees, kid. We are all anxious to see what you've got!