As Director of Pro Scouting, I lead a talented group of evaluators as we break down future stars. You can find me at random California League games throughout the season!
The Yankees are routinely one of the best-run organizations in the sport, but this time around, their farm system has dipped slightly compared to last year. There are plenty of reasons for this. They're one of the few teams unafraid to trade prospects, and they graduated several this season. On top of that, a few key prospects took steps back, with Spencer Jones leading the list. During spring training, it looked like Jones had figured out his swing, but once the season started, major contact issues emerged. Jasson DomÃnguez, "The Martian," also regressed from where he was a year ago. On the positive side, the Yankees added quality arms through the draft, going hard after the college pitching demographic. This is an organization that excels at optimizing pitchers through its "Gas Station" pitching lab. The Yankees' ability to leverage their farm system to upgrade their major league team is commendable, and this current batch of talent could be key if they aim to make a big offseason move to strengthen their World Series chances.
About Our Top 20 Lists
Prospects Live, led by its evaluating team & Director of Scouting Rhys White, is proud to begin rolling out its annual offseason system reports. The team combines industry feedback, our live looks, film, and available data to compile each org. We believe this effort has enabled us to present you, the reader, with our best possible view of the prospects in the organization.
We have constructed this list using the Overall Future Potential (OFP) scale. There is no perfect equation for ranking prospects or assigning value to them, but we believe this method is the best possible approach. Every prospect on this list has been graded based on the tried and true 20-80 scouting scale. An 80 is the highest tool and OFP grade on the scale, reserved for MVP-caliber players or tools. Conversely, a 20 is reserved for non-prospects (NPs). A 50 OFP falls in the middle, indicating our evaluators deem this player a future average major league player. Below the 50 OFP tier are the 45s and 40s, comprising a large majority of players on each list. These are specific-role players, such as platoon hitters, utility players, or low-leverage relievers. Above the 50 OFP tier are the 55s and 60s. A 55 represents a future above-average player, and a 60 OFP designation is reserved for future All-Star caliber players.
In addition to the tool grades and OFP, we will also include a 'Risk' associated with each prospect. We use this to better communicate to you, the reader, whether a grade is more aggressive or conservative in nature. The evaluation team has worked hard to apply both the grades and risk components to better illustrate how each individual prospect stacks up in their respective system and in the baseball ecosystem.
Evaluators: Rhys White, Matt Thompson, Alex Kempton, Tyler Jennings, Preston Farr, Grant Carver, Harris Yudin
1. Jasson DomÃnguez 2. George Lombard Jr. 3. Spencer Jones 4. Chase Hampton 5. Ben Hess 6. Will Warren 7. Sabier Marte 8. Bryce Cunningham 9. Cade Smith 10. Enmanuel Tejeda 11. Edgleen Perez 12. Thatcher Hurd 13. Roderick Arias 14. Francisco Vilorio 15. Gage Ziehl 16. Jorbit Vivas 17. Rafael Flores 18. Omar Martinez 19. Carlos Lagrange 20. Clayton Beeter
Scouting Reports
OF Jasson DomÃnguez
DOB: 2/7/2003
HT: 5-10
WT: 190
H/T: S/R
Acquired: 2019 IFA
Highest Level: MLB
ETA: 2023
Rule V: 40-Man
Grades:
Hit
Power
Field
Throw
Run
OFP
Risk
50
60
45
55
55
50
Extreme
SCOUTING REPORT
The Martian made his major league debut last year but suffered a right UCL tear in September, which shut down his season. After recovering from Tommy John surgery, he was activated but then suffered a left oblique injury in June, just four games later. He is now 30 at-bats away from graduating from prospect status. DomÃnguez remains the same athlete he has been since coming stateside, built like an old-school fullback or linebacker. As a switch-hitter, he generates similar plus-plus bat speed from both sides of the plate. His setup is simple: a slight leg kick and a quick bat through the zone. The left-handed swing has more loft than the right-handed one, which tends to get pretty linear, resulting in less impact upon contact and more line drives and ground balls. The left-handed swing, however, has effortless plus-plus power. DomÃnguez makes solid swing decisions but has some issues chasing pitches out of the zone, especially vertically inclined breaking balls and changeups. He has average range for a center fielder in the outfield with solid jumps, although his reads off the bat can be a bit dicey. Ultimately, he’s likely to move to a corner outfield spot, and the fact that he couldn’t beat out Alex Verdugo for a spot there says a lot about how the Yankees view him. His arm was plus before Tommy John surgery, but it has since scaled down a grade. Jasson DomÃnguez is one of the highest-profile and most divisive prospects in recent memory. Once considered a sure-fire Hall of Famer, his prospect stock has fluctuated wildly, and he has now settled in as a 50 OFP prospect. He should become a 25-28 homer threat with above-average speed and arm strength, ultimately becoming a below-average defender in a corner outfield position. - Rhys White
FANTASY SPIN
Now a prospect in name only, the Martian has settled prominently somewhere in the creamy middle of the lofty expectations unfairly thrust upon him in his youth – Mickey Mantle, he is not. Still, you should gladly settle for some mix of Randy Arozarena, peak Andrew McCutchen, and peak Carlos Gonzalez. Our prospect rating tool, PLIVE+, still adores DomÃnguez, scoring him at 151, good for the ninth-highest mark of any prospect batter in 2024, and projects him for a .271/.349/.453 slash line with 20-plus home runs and 20-plus stolen bases per season, though I personally still value the Martian closer to Rhys’ mark of 25-28 dingers in a year. If the 2024 stat line (even combined through four levels, including MLB) scares you, consider DomÃnguez missed a ton of time and still produced counting stats projected towards his 2023 levels. He’s a top-ten prospect across the industry when he’s ranked, and I’ve got him towards the tippy-top of my list – our team slotted DomÃnguez 4th of 500 at the end of the 2024 season. – Drew Wheeler
As Director of Pro Scouting, I lead a talented group of evaluators as we break down future stars. You can find me at random California League games throughout the season!
Director of Dynasty Content - Canadian born and raised, moved to Arkansas with my wife and two sons Ezra and Ari. Followed and played baseball my whole life; played dynasty for 25+ years.
As Director of Pro Scouting, I lead a talented group of evaluators as we break down future stars. You can find me at random California League games throughout the season!
Director of Amateur Scouting, proud to lead and share the team's work. | Check out Path to the Show on Bally Sports Live and College Baseball Now everywhere! | Grateful for family, the Vols, and everyone who reads Prospects Live. | For His Glory.
Director of Dynasty Content - Canadian born and raised, moved to Arkansas with my wife and two sons Ezra and Ari. Followed and played baseball my whole life; played dynasty for 25+ years.
Director of Amateur Scouting, proud to lead and share the team's work. | Check out Path to the Show on Bally Sports Live and College Baseball Now everywhere! | Grateful for family, the Vols, and everyone who reads Prospects Live. | For His Glory.
Director of Dynasty Content - Canadian born and raised, moved to Arkansas with my wife and two sons Ezra and Ari. Followed and played baseball my whole life; played dynasty for 25+ years.
Director of Amateur Scouting, proud to lead and share the team's work. | Check out Path to the Show on Bally Sports Live and College Baseball Now everywhere! | Grateful for family, the Vols, and everyone who reads Prospects Live. | For His Glory.
Director of Dynasty Content - Canadian born and raised, moved to Arkansas with my wife and two sons Ezra and Ari. Followed and played baseball my whole life; played dynasty for 25+ years.
