El Marciano officially landed for the first time in Houston, Texas, in September, 2023. Famously, the then-20-year-old took future Hall of Famer Justin Verlander yard for his first career home run. After
years of hype… Yankee fans thought Domínguez was a cross between Mickey Mantle, Willie Mays, and Mike Trout when the club signed him as a 16-year-old… the future looked bright.
Unfortunately, injury derailed Domínguez and cost him almost all the 2024 season. But The Martian was healthy coming into 2025 and optimism abounded. Eight Pinstripe Alley writers, including yours truly, inked him in as the 2025 American League Rookie of the Year. Mike Axisa at CBS Sports also had him firmly in the mix for the award.
All told, it was a mixed first full season for Jasson. He was (mostly) not over-matched in his first prolonged exposure to big league pitching, but he had some glaring holes in his profile that the Yankees hope he will address going forward.
Grade: C
2025 Stats: 123 games, .257/.331/.388, 10 HR, 47 RBI, 101 wRC+, 23 SB, 0.5 bWAR, 0.6 fWAR
2026 Contract Status: pre-arbitration, $820,000
At the dish, Domínguez came out strong. He was roughly league average through the end of April. Once the calendar flipped to May, however, he had his best stretch of the season at the plate. It was highlighted by a three home run, seven RBI game against the Athletics on May 9th. You could have been forgiven for thinking 25-HR, 80-RBI for Jasson at that point.
When the calendar turned to June, The Martian fell back to Earth at the dish. He heated up again in July before crashing down and struggling in August. Interestingly, he adjusted seamlessly in September, when his playing time almost vanished, due to Trent Grisham’s breakout season. Though he only accrued 17 at-bats in 13 games down the stretch, Domínguez put together five hits. Along with a couple of walks and a hit-by-pitch, he put together a .400 OBP in the season’s final games.
His speed was also on display throughout 2025. His 23 stolen bases trailed only Jazz Chisholm Jr. on the team and his sprint speed ranked in the 84th percentile in baseball.
Any story about Jasson at the plate, however, is incomplete without addressing his platoon splits. He came into 2025 with a total of 25 at-bats against left-handed pitching in the majors. And remember, he lost almost all of 2024 to injury. He’s been weakest hitting from the right side, and that showed up this season.
Facing right-handed pitching, The Martian hit .274/.348/.420. While the power was still weirdly absent, that’s not a shabby slash line. Against southpaws on the other hand, he was almost helpless: .204/.279/.290. Domínguez is off to play winter ball and you have to assume he’ll be getting as many swings in as possible against lefties.
Still only 22-years-old (2026 will be his age-23 season), having lost valuable development time due to COVID and injury, and obviously talented, it’s not unreasonable to think that he can improve against lefty pitching at least to the point that he can hold his own.
But the right side of the plate wasn’t the only place he struggled. Left field was, to be kind, an adventure. Domínguez had predominantly played center field in the minor leagues and his initial season in left was rough. While he showed off his cannon of an arm (his arm strength is in the 92nd percentile), he was far below average defensively. He finished the season with -10 Outs Above Average, good for the 2nd percentile in all of MLB. Speaking of playing winter ball, here’s hoping he gets an absolute boat load of reps in left field.
Talking to MLB’s Bryan Hoch, manager Aaron Boone noted that the sky is still the limit defensively for Domínguez: “I think he’s made tremendous strides out there as well. I think we can all envision him becoming a very good defender out there, just with his athleticism, his speed, his arm strength and the work he’s put into it.”
Boone also pointed out how well The Martian took his late-season demotion, saying he handled it “great” and calling him a “really great teammate.”
2025 really was a mixed bag. El Marciano was a pretty darn good hitter from the right side of the plate, showed off his speed, and featured a rocket arm in left field, all while playing at just 22-years-old. But… he was almost an automatic out hitting right-handed and struggled greatly in left field.
Off-season noise suggests a move to center field is not in the cards moving forward, so expect to see Domínguez in left field in 2026, depending on how the Yankee offseason progresses. Given the maturity with which he handled the demotion and his obvious talent, it would not be surprising in the slightest if he looks much better in the field and facing southpaws in 2026.
