Yankees bring Spencer Jones back up to replace Aaron Judge
· Yahoo Sports
In light of Aaron Judge’s stress fracture in his right rib, the Yankees will be without their captain and three-time AL MVP for at least four-to-six weeks. It will probably be longer than that.
So, with Giancarlo Stanton and Jasson Domínguez still not ready to return from their respective injuries, the organization decided to call up fellow outfielder Spencer Jones from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to replace Judge on the roster. Jack Curry of the YES Network was the first to report the news.
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Jones, who opened the year with the RailRiders, was promoted by the Yankees on May 8th to fill in for Domínguez, who was heading to the injured list following his collision with left-field wall at Yankee Stadium. By that point, Jones was slashing a cool .258/.366/.592 with 11 homers, 41 RBI, and seven stolen bases in his first 142 trips to the plate in Scranton this year.
The 2022 first-rounder’s time in the majors wasn’t particularly productive, though, as he hit just .167/.259/.167 with no home runs and a 44.4-percent strikeout rate in 27 plate appearances. He was optioned back to Triple-A on May 21st when José Caballero returned from his own minor injury.
Circumstances have forced the Yankees’ hand again, as they are now without Judge, Stanton, and Domínguez. Jones will get another chance to prove that he can conquer his demons and produce enough with the bat to mitigate the strikeouts — though with Domínguez about to go on a rehab assignment, the clock could already be ticking.
Jones had posted a .919 OPS in 10 games in Triple-A since being optioned in late May. By now, it’s pretty clear that he can produce in the upper minors: for the year, he boasts a .269/.378/.571 line with 13 home runs, nine stolen bases, 48 RBI, and a 143 wRC+ in 43 games and 185 trips to the plate.
The challenge, for Jones, will be replicating this production at the highest level, against better, more experienced pitchers ready to exploit the holes in his swing. The strikeout rate will never be pretty, but we have seen many players succeed with contact issues. It’s just about finding a better approach at the plate to cut down on them to at least palatable levels.
Jones figures to play a lot against right-handers, with the Yankees being so short-handed at the moment. He can play center field, which could go a long way in improving the team’s outfield defense. Jones will have to hit enough to justify his playing time, though. If this whiffs are still too prominent, we may see more of Caballero and Max Schuemann flanking Trent Grisham and Cody Bellinger in the outfield instead until Domínguez returns.