Just eight games into his MLB career, Yankees rookie and top prospect Jasson Domínguez has suffered a serious injury. The outfielder was a late scratch from the Yankees lineup on Sunday with elbow inflammation. After the game, Yankees manager Aaron Boone told reporters that it's a torn UCL for Domínguez.
The UCL is the ulnar collateral ligament in the elbow. When torn, the most common procedure to repair the ligament is known as Tommy John surgery and typically keeps pitchers out 12-14 months. Position players can return quicker, especially to serve as the designated hitter, such as when Bryce Harper returned this season in May after having surgery in November.
Domínguez told reporters on Sunday that his plan is to get surgery "as soon as possible."
"The plan is to go through surgery as soon as possible and try to recuperate as soon as possible." — Jasson Domínguez on his current timeline, via the Yankees' Spanish translator.
— Brendan Kuty 🧟♂️ (@BrendanKutyNJ) September 10, 2023
To be clear, The Yankees have not officially announced that Domínguez will have Tommy John surgery, but it appears to be the most likely outcome. Harper played most of the 2022 season with his UCL torn and more recently, Shohei Ohtani kept serving as a DH with a tear in his. The injury is to the right elbow of Domínguez and that's his throwing arm.
Domínguez, 20, made MLB history by homering in four of his first seven games -- becoming the youngest ever to do so -- and is hitting .258/.303/.677 with seven RBI in his eight career MLB games. He homered in his first career game against the Astros on Sept. 1.
Domínguez has been one of the Yankees' top prospects and one of the most hyped young players in professional baseball after signing with the Yankees for more than $5 million out of the Dominican Republic in 2019. CBS Sports' R.J. Anderson ranked him as the third-best Yankees prospect entering the 2023 season, writing Domínguez "still possesses some intriguing physical projection, too, including above-average power and speed."
Obviously a huge part of the Yankees' future plans, Domínguez will surely be handled with care by the Yankees medical staff moving forward.
