Yankee Top Prospects to Fight Over Lone Starting Spot
New York Yankees GM Brian Cashman has often said that he takes notes during meetings with the press. In turn, the press takes notes on everything he chooses to divulge, whether the organization realizes it or not. An interesting nugget surfaced during his recent comments about the outfield picture, shortly after Trent Grisham accepted the $22 million qualifying offer for 2026. While expressing his interest in bringing back Cody Bellinger, Cashman unintentionally revealed part of his future blueprint for the team’s top two prospects.
When asked whether Bellinger was an option to return, Cashman laid out what appears to be the default plan for next year’s outfield. “Now we have Jasson Dominguez and Spencer Jones competing for left field, and we have Grisham, and we have Judge,” stated Cashman. It’s an eyebrow-raising stance, especially with Jones on the 40-man roster and Bellinger still in the picture. Bringing back the former MVP would create an immediate logjam. Beyond that, pitting your top two homegrown talents against each other suggests that one of them would inevitably be pushed into a fourth-outfielder role or dangled as trade bait. Under this framework, there is no room for both to play regularly.
This dynamic is nothing new for the Yankees. The organization has long shown reluctance to trust its minor leaguers with starting roles unless their performance becomes impossible to ignore. Ben Rice is a recent example: he wasn’t truly in their plans until he forced his way into them with a breakout season. Jasson and Spencer are both well aware that they will have to impress to capture the organization’s exclusive attention.
Domínguez, meanwhile, is currently playing Winter League ball in the Dominican Republic with Escogido, working to shore up his lone major weakness, his outfield defense. His contributions to the Yankees’ 2025 success were both multi-faceted and, in many ways, overlooked. At the plate, he displayed patience and maturity, hitting .257 with 98 hits, 10 home runs, and 47 RBIs. His elite speed added a dynamic element starkly different from the station-to-station approach the team often fell into. He drew 41 walks, stole 23 bases, and scored 58 runs, all while receiving little public acknowledgment from the organization for the value he brought.
Spencer Jones is working on his game as well, as he is already down in Florida working out of the Yankee Tampa facility per his request. He had a well-publicized power surge in his first 19 Triple-A games, launching 13 home runs in a stretch that grabbed national attention. Yet, when you incorporate the numbers from his time at the more challenging Double-A level, his overall production becomes even more impressive: a .274 average with 35 home runs, 80 RBIs, and 29 stolen bases. His tendency to strike out remains the biggest concern, yet his Double-A performance suggests progress. Jones hit 16 of his home runs and drove in 32 runs during his stint with Scranton, demonstrating that his power travels as he climbs the ladder. His speed also plays a major role in the outfield, where his long strides allow him to cover significant ground and project as a plus defender. One thing is for certain. The organization has soured on both these talents, and this makes the upcoming season a make-or-break proposition for both.
