Spencer Jones is the Yankees' biggest prospect, literally: He has major power and a major flaw

Move over, Aaron Judge... the Yankees have another 6-foot-7 slugger, and he's set to make his MLB debut Friday

Mike Axisa

May 8, 2026

11:39 am ET

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7 min read

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Friday night the New York Yankees will debut one of their biggest prospects, literally. Outfielder Spencer Jones, who is listed at 6-foot-7 and 240 lbs., has been called up to make his MLB debut. Jones will replace Jasson Domínguez, who suffered a shoulder injury when he crashed into the outfield wall Thursday. Domínguez is expected to miss several weeks.

"The concussion testing so far is negative, so that's good. We'll obviously continue to monitor that," Yankees manager Aaron Boone said about Domínguez's injury. "He's got a low grade -- minor -- AC sprain of his left shoulder. That'll put him on the IL and that could be a few weeks. That's what we're dealing with right now."

> Prior to tonight’s game, the Yankees made the following roster moves:

•Recalled RHP Kervin Castro (#74) from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

•Placed OF Jasson Domínguez on the 10-day injured list with a left shoulder AC joint sprain.

•Recalled OF Spencer Jones (#78) from…

— Yankees PR Dept. (@YankeesPR) May 8, 2026

Jones, 24, did not rank among our top 100 prospects or our top 20 AL East prospects entering the season, though he is not an unknown. The No. 25 pick in the 2022 MLB Draft finished second in the minors with 35 home runs last year despite missing a month with an intercostal injury. He was one home run behind Ryan Ward (Los Angeles Dodgers) despite 146 fewer plate appearances.

This season Jones is hitting .258/.366/.592 in 33 Triple-A games. His 11 home runs are fifth most in the minors. Jones is in the middle of a hot streak too, having blasted six homers in his last eight games. That includes a 117.4 mph rocket earlier this week that ranks as the second hardest hit ball in the minors this year. Only two balls have been hit harder in the big leagues.

"He shows up every day with the same attitude," Yankees utility man Max Schuemann, who played with Jones in Triple-A, said Thursday (via MLB.com). "Whether it's a good day or a bad day, it doesn't matter for that guy."

The major drawback with Jones is the swing-and-miss in his game. He's struck out in 32.4% of his plate appearances this year, a rate that would lead MLB most years, and Jones is doing it in Triple-A. He's made contact with 71.1% of pitches in the strike zone. That would be second lowest among qualified MLB hitters, and again, Jones is doing that in Triple-A.

Things are trending in the right direction, though. In his first 16 games, Jones had a 40.0% strikeout rate and a ghastly 56.3% in-zone contact rate. In his last 17 games, it's a more manageable 25.0% strikeout rate and 74.7% in-zone contact rate. Jones will always whiff a bunch given his size. Can he get his strikeout rate out of fatal flaw territory and just be below average?

"The last three or four weeks have been a lot of consistent at-bats," Boone said about Jones (via MLB.com). "The power has been there. Less swing and miss, which is some of the things we were seeing a little bit in spring training. After that second week in Triple-A where he struggled a little bit with swing and miss, he's cleaned that up."

It won't be a soft landing for Jones in his MLB debut. The Yankees are scheduled to face Milwaukee Brewers ace Jacob Misiorowski on Friday. Misiorowski has 59 strikeouts in 38 innings this season, and his 38.1% strikeout rate leads qualified pitchers. Dylan Cease is a distant second with a 33.7% strikeout rate. So yeah, Jones will have his hands full in his first big-league game.

Here is what you need about Jones leading into his MLB debut, and what to expect during his time with the Yankees.

He's modeled his toe tap after Ohtani's

The poor contact rates are not due to a lack of effort. Jones has changed his batting stance and his swing several times over the years in an effort to find something that works and feels comfortable. This year's big adjustment is eliminating his old leg kick and using a simple toe tap. Jones said Shohei Ohtani was the inspiration for that change.

"He's a great reference of a really good mover with a great swing," Jones said in spring training about copying Ohtani's top toe (via MLB.com). "He's one of those guys that I look at with some of the stuff he does, and I try to apply it in whichever way I can."

> A comparison of Shohei Ohtani and Spencer Jones's swings:#YANKSonYES pic.twitter.com/P3IwKivLho

— YES Network (@YESNetwork) February 26, 2026

Copying Ohtani's toe tap and hitting like Ohtani are two very different things. Jones is trying, though. He's well aware that he strikes out a lot and has issues making contact, particularly in the zone, and he's searching for ways to close that hole. If nothing else, the toe tap cuts down on pre-pitch movement and gives Jo