Around the Empire: Yankees news - 9/1/23

AP | Mark Didtler: Owner Hal Steinbrenner offered some words yesterday at the Yankees’ complex in Tampa, and spoke on the promotions of the team’s top prospects, as well the club’s baseball operations. “We’re going to take a very deep dive into everything we’re doing. We’re looking to bring in possibly an outside company to really take a look at the analytics side of what we do. Baseball operations in general” Steinbrenner said. Bringing in external help to analyze what’s gone wrong sounds like a start to turning things around.

MLB Pipeline | Jonathan Mayo: It’s Martian Day in the Bronx. With Jasson Domínguez set to make his highly-anticipated debut, Mayo runs through his journey across the minors the last few years, as well as what to expect from the switch-hitting youngster over the next month. Domínguez’s swing decisions have improved markedly as the season has gone on, so whether he can keep up that refined discipline against big-league pitchers is something to watch. Mayo also notes that Domínguez has been slightly better as a lefty, and, as expected, he’s consistently able to crush fastballs. Keep that in mind if Domínguez struggles against a tough southpaw, or if opposing teams pepper him with soft stuff.

New York Post | Greg Joyce: In case you missed it, center fielder Harrison Bader was claimed on waivers by the Reds yesterday. The 29-year-old now has a chance to ply his trade for a team with real designs on making the playoffs this year. This closes the book on Bader’s fun but also somewhat disappointing time with the Yankees. He was a revelation during last season’s playoffs, and his defensive work in center was always stellar to watch, but Bader never really got his bat going during the regular season. In 98 games as a Yankee, Bader managed just a 72 OPS+, with his defense and baserunning keeping him afloat and allowing to accumulate 0.8 rWAR in that span.

CBS Sports | Matt Snyder: Bader wasn’t the only name player to change teams yesterday. Along with Bader, the Reds also scooped up outfielder Hunter Renfroe from the Angels. The Guardians were busy as well, grabbing three pitchers from the Halo: Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo López, and Matt Moore. The Mariners got in on Arte Moreno’s fire sale too, picking up reliever Dominic Leone, though Randal Grichuk went unclaimed.

New York Daily News | Peter Sblendorio: Giancarlo Stanton’s home run against the Tigers Wednesday was the 398th of his career, and his 20th of 2023, marking the 12th time in his career he’s reached that mark. He’s likely to surpass the 400-homer barrier this season, a threshold only 57 players in history have crossed, and the 33-year-old still has a puncher’s chance at 500 homers. Yet his milestone dingers have generally fallen under the radar, due to the Yankees’ overall malaise and Stanton’s own struggles and injuries.

MLB Trade Rumors | Darragh McDonald: The Brewers signed Josh Donaldson to a minor league deal, and assigned him to Triple-A Nashville. Donaldson hit the 60-day IL earlier this season after suffering a severe hamstring injury that looked as though it would end his season, but he was seen working out at Yankee Stadium last week. The Yankees released the veteran, and he’ll now have the theoretical opportunity to contribute to a playoff push for the NL Central-leading Brewers. (Also of minor interest: recently-DFA’d outfielder Greg Allen signed on with Milwaukee as well.)