The 2023 season has been one full of disappointment for the New York Yankees as they have had one of the worst seasons in the franchise’s history and have been bitten by the injury bug all season. However, the poor performance and injuries have opened the door for a few of their top prospects to get some time with the big club and try to earn their spot on the roster for next season. Ever since the Yankees core four retired, the Yankees have yet to find an everyday catcher and everyday shortstop, but it looks like they may have some more stability at the position heading into next year. Despite the losses and everyone looking at the negatives from this year, I want to do the opposite and look at the positives from the 2023 season for the New York Yankees; there aren’t many, but there are three rookie standouts that should keep Yankee fans a reason to continue watching throughout September even though they won’t be playing postseason baseball come October.
Anthony Volpe
The future for the Yankees at shortstop has finally arrived in Anthony Volpe, who, for his rookie season, is having a pretty decent season as he’s already put up 20 homers and 20 stolen bases this season while hitting .218 with 57 RBIS; Volpe also gives the Yankees stability at second base as ever since Derek Jeter retired, as Didi Gregorius and Isiah Kiner-Falefa both occupied that spot after Jeter retired. I don’t expect Volpe to be the great player that Jeter was, but he will be a solid shortstop for the Bronx Bombers on both sides of the ball and is just a small piece of the up-and-coming prospects for the Yankees. Volpe has been the only one of the three rookies in this article who has been with the Yankees all season.
Austin Wells
Wells hasn’t been able to do much at the plate, but there has been a lot of talk about what he’s able to do behind it as he’s starting to make the small adjustments to help pitchers and has already heard praise from Micheal King on how quickly he’s been able to make those adjustments. The Yankees don’t have much competition ahead of Wells as Kyle Higashioka and Ben Rortvedt have both had sub-par seasons, which leaves the door wide open for a guy like Wells. Heading into next season, it wouldn’t be a shock if Wells is the Yankee’s starting catcher. In fact, I think out of all three rookies in this article, he has the best chance of being on all three rookies mentioned just due to the lack of production the Yankees have gotten out of that position.
Jasson Dominguez
The 20-year-old outfielder, who began the year in AA, now finds himself with the big club as the rosters expand for the season’s final month. Dominguez wasted no time making his presence felt in New York as he homered in his first at-bat in the big leagues and now finds himself hitting third in the Yankees lineup. The Yankees outfield brings a ton of power to the plate as they already had Aaron Judge and Gionacalos Stanton, who are both known for their power, and now Dominguez adds that triple threat. There’s no question that the Yankees are using the last month as auditions for next season, and it would be hard to think that Dominguez isn’t going to be a part of their plan moving forward. However, the Yankees also have Eversian Pereria, another young outfield prospect who is vying for that everyday left fielder role.
