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New York Minor League Updates Vol. 3

Date: July 23, 2021

By: Chris Kiely

Tampa Tarpons players celebrate after scoring a run during a minor league game.

Mark LoMoglio/Tampa Tarpons

In the third edition of my New York Minor League Update across the New York Mets and Yankees’ farm systems, here’s some more recent news from these exciting prospects:

Week Review of Jason Dominguez and Hoy Jun Park (NYY)

Jason Dominguez looks at the field during the Futures game for minor league baseball.

Getty Images

Before we begin with players to keep an eye on, it is about time this series discusses the crown jewel of the New York area’s minor league baseball scene. That is of course Yankees’ top prospect, Jason Dominguez.

As just an 18-year-old player, Dominguez is garnering the prospect hype of other superstars such as Stephen Strasburg, Bryce Harper, and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Without even taking an at-bat at even rookie ball level, he was awarded to take part at the MLB’s All Star Future Game in Denver, Colo., representing the Yankees. Also, I must add that these jerseys for the Futures Game are infinitely better than the ones on display in the MLB All-Star Game for the American and National League.

After the mid-summer festivities, “the Martian” did some more traveling, as the Yankees announced he was getting called up to Single-A affiliate Tampa Tarpons. In just four games, he has already hit 7/17, including a home run and a triple that shows grace is not yet one of his five tools with a slide into third base. 


In addition, the Yankees have called up Hoy Jun Park from the Triple-A Scranton Wilkes-Barre RailRiders. In my previous article in this series, I mentioned that Park’s performance so far this year on the farm was making it harder and harder for Cashman to not call him up to the “Show”. In 54 games across Double-A and Triple-A, Park had a slash line .303/.450/.505 with nine home runs, and 28 RBIs. With the major disappointment that almost the entire infield has been, I hope he can provide a consistent contact bat the Yankees need for this second half of the season.

Kumar Rocker (NYM) 2021 MLB Draft: Round 1 Pick No. 10

Kumar Rocker throws a pitch during a Vanderbilt baseball game.

Peter Aiken/Getty Images

The New York Mets also made a major big move this past week during the All-Star festivities. On Monday, with the 10th pick of the first round in the 2021 MLB Draft, the Mets selected RHP Kumar Rocker out of Vanderbilt. In his two full seasons and early part of 2020, he cumulated a 2.89 ERA, a 12.2 SO/9, a 28-10 record, two College World Series Final appearances, a College World Series, and a Finals MVP. Rocker burst on to the national scene in the 2019 Super Regional, facing elimination against the Duke Blue Devils in Game two of a best of three series, where he threw a no-hitter. 

In his time in Nashville, Tenn., the 6-foot-5 pitcher has shown his ability to overpower hitters with his powering combination of a blazing fastball and breaking pitches that cause batters to be off-balance on routine basis. His four-seamer ranges around 93-96 mph, with his high as much as 99. His slider sits in the mid-80s with a mix of power and curve.

One place for him to improve on is his command, which will decide his fate in a potential career in the MLB. Rocker has the potential of being a frontline starter in Flushing but is nowhere close to being a finished product. Ever since then, fans have been counting down to when their team could possibly draft him. For the Mets, they were the ones fortunate enough to get the dynamic 21-year-old.

Chris Kiely can be reached at christopher.kiely@student.shu.edu.

Posted in: Sports

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