For the third year in a row, the New York Yankees do not have a solidified leadoff hitter heading into the new season. If we wanted to be harsh, we’d say the fifth year in a row, given all the injury troubles DJ LeMahieu has dealt with, but he was projected to be that guy in 2021 and 2022.

Otherwise, it’s been a failed experiment. For whatever reason, the Yankees tried to force a raw Anthony Volpe into that role, and it failed spectacularly. Alex Verdugo was there for a bit in 2024. Gleyber Torres sparked the offense a bit last year, but now he’s gone. As you can see, none of these are preferred options.

So what’s the deal for 2025? Waiting on a healthy LeMahieu? Ha! Trying Volpe there again? Maybe Jazz Chisholm? Cody Bellinger? Again, why is there no clear answer again?

And why are the Yankees going to potentially try out an idea that can only blow up in their face? Aaron Boone told MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch that he “believes [Jasson] Dominguez’s skill set fits well there.” Dominguez? The same guy you refused to play down the stretch last year, even when Verdugo fell off a cliff?

Now he’s your leadoff hitter to begin the 2025 season? Fans aren’t necessarily opposed to it — it’s more so the way this organization continuously arrives at their decisions.

What will the Yankees’ Opening Day lineup look like? Aaron Boone is considering Jasson Domínguez in the leadoff spot: https://t.co/htqlIIs8uq

— Bryan Hoch ⚾️ (@BryanHoch) February 11, 2025

Yankees considering putting Jasson Dominguez as leadoff hitter for 2025

At the beginning of September last year, Brian Cashman told reporters “there was no lane” for Dominguez to get playing time at the big-league level when rosters expanded, so he was left at Triple-A. A little over a week later, he was called up and starting in the outfield.

Then … he was benched again after some shaky defense in the outfield, which was a symptom of the Yankees delaying his promotion for weeks despite being in need of another outfielder. He received 67 plate appearances and didn’t receive a single at-bat in the postseason.

Fast forward four months and now all of a sudden his skill set — which the Yankees didn’t view as superior to Verdugo’s — is now suitable to set the table atop the lineup with Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and Cody Bellinger hitting behind him. Again, fans are not down on Dominguez’s future impact; they’re more confused about how the Yankees treat their prospects/players and how they end up filling important roles with question marks.

Dominguez should have a promising Yankees career, but the results have varied greatly. And his injury troubles have taken centerstage the last couple years. He’s somebody who needs to be eased back into big-league play, not thrown into the fire as the guy who needs to be the engine for the offense.