Big-time big-league debut for Jasson Dominguez on milestone night for the Yankees
On a memorable Friday night at Houston’s Minute Maid Park, Jasson Dominguez became the youngest Yankees player to hit a home run in his big-league debut.
Not to be outdone, fellow rookie Austin Wells singled in his first MLB at-bat and caught the Yankees’ 6-2 victory, snapping the Astros’ five-game winning streak.
Both Dominguez and Wells, notable Yankees offensive prospects, were called up for this weekend as rosters expanded - further signaling September as an audition period ahead of 2024 spring training.
Starting Friday along with fellow rookies Everson Pereira, Anthony Volpe and Oswald Peraza, it marked just the second time since 1971 that the Yankees had at least five players aged 24 or younger in the same lineup.
Aaron Judge milestone home run
With the roof closed at Minute Maid Park, the Yankees smashed four home runs Friday off Justin Verlander, including Aaron Judge’s 30th homer of the year – a milestone solo shot in the fifth inning.
Judge, 31, reached his 250th career home run faster than anyone in MLB history, in his 810th regular season game.
And the two-run homer by Giancarlo Stanton in Friday’s third inning was the 399th of his career.
Jasson Dominguez enters Yankees lore
Batting fifth and playing center field in his Yankees debut, Dominguez’s first swing produced his first home run.
It was a two-run shot and it came against a future Hall of Famer, adding a little something extra to the occasion.
After a leadoff homer by DJ LeMahieu and a two-out walk to Stanton, the switch-hitting Dominguez drove Verlander’s 0-1 fastball the opposite way over the left field wall for a 3-0 Yankees lead.
Wearing No. 89, and with his parents and several other family members in attendance, Dominguez (1-for-4) made solid contact in all four of his at-bats Friday, including a lineout to left and a deep flyout to center.
Matching an Aaron Judge accomplishment
But with that first-inning swing, Dominguez – at 20 years and 206 days old – became the youngest Yankee to homer in his debut.
He was also the youngest Yankee to appear in a game since pitcher Jose Rijo in 1984, and the youngest Yankee to make his MLB debut since Stan Javier, also in 1984.
With his first swing in the majors, Dominguez became the sixth Yankee in franchise history to hit a home run in his first at-bat, and the first to accomplish the feat since Judge.
On Aug. 13, 2016, at Yankee Stadium, both Tyler Austin and Judge clubbed back-to-back home runs in their first MLB at-bats.
Security staff at Houston, working with Yankees security, retrieved the home run baseball for Dominguez, ranked as the Yankees' No. 2 prospect and No. 77 overall this year by MLB Pipeline.
Austin Wells' all-around successful debut
Wells batted seventh in his debut, also showing plate discipline and making good contact in his 1-for-4 night.
Leading off the second inning, the lefty-hitting Wells fell behind Verlander, 1-2, in his first time up. But he fought back to a full count and laced a slider to right field for a single.
In the stands, Wells' parents embraced; the Yankees' 2020 first round draft pick from the University of Arizona had a large contingent of family and friends present for his debut.
Wells also caught Carlos Rodon's second win of the year, having previously worked with the veteran lefty during spring training bullpen sessions and minor league rehab starts.
At age 24, Wells became the youngest catcher to debut with the Yankees since Thurman Munson in 1969, at age 22. Wells was also the first Yankee to make his big-league debut as a starting catcher since Mike Figga in 1997.
Recalled from Class AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Friday, rookie right-hander Randy Vasquez followed Rodon (5 IP, 2 ER) with two scoreless innings and Jonathan Loaisiga finished by retiring all four batters he faced.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Big-time big-league debut for Jasson Dominguez on milestone night for the Yankees
