Yankees not quite ready to use Spencer Jones against lefties

Gary Phillips, New York Daily News on Jun 17, 2026

Published in Baseball

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NEW YORK — With the Yankees facing Blue Jays southpaw Patrick Corbin and the lefty-swinging Spencer Jones out of the lineup on Sunday in Toronto, Aaron Boone was asked if the young outfielder could get some chances against left-handed pitches moving forward.

“Yeah, I think so,” the manager replied. “I’m sure at some point I’ll do that.”

That point did not come on Wednesday, however, as Jones, who went 1-for-2 with two walks, a strikeout and his first home run at Yankee Stadium in Tuesday’s win, was out of the lineup with the White Sox starting Anthony Kay, another left-hander. Boone said he debated giving Jones a go before the Yankees beat Chicago, 10-5, but Kay has dominated left-handed hitters this season, holding them to a .143 average and a .482 OPS before Wednesday’s game.

Jones, meanwhile, has only gotten eight big league plate appearances against lefties. He entered Wednesday’s game hitless with two walks and four strikeouts against them. He struggled against left-handers at Triple-A this year as well, hitting just .208 with a .663 OPS.

“It really came down to Kay just being so good against lefties, and he’s had some struggles against righties,” Boone explained. “Pretty drastic, pretty big split. So it was definitely a game going into this week that I was going to have as much of a righty presence as I probably could have. But yeah, I did consider [Jones].”

With Kay throwing for the Sox, Boone had five righties in Wednesday’s lineup, as well as the switch-hitting Jasson Domínguez. The configuration resulted in the Bombers’ second straight win over the White Sox, which featured home runs from Cody Bellinger, who took Kay deep for a left-on-left crime, red-hot righty Paul Goldschmidt, and Jazz Chisholm Jr.

While the Yankees don’t seem eager to have Jones start against lefties, Boone has been impressed with the 25-year-old’s at-bats since being recalled.

Jones demonstrated the strikeout and in-zone contact issues that plagued him in the minors during his first big league cup of coffee earlier this season, hitting .167 with two RBI, three walks, 12 strikeouts and a .426 OPS over 27 plate appearances and 10 games. However, since returning to the big leagues in place of the injured Aaron Judge, Jones has hit .318 with two homers, five RBI, four walks, nine strikeouts and a 1.059 OPS over 26 plate appearances and eight games.

Jones’ strikeout and contact concerns remain, but he’s been getting results.

“Even going back to his first time, when he didn’t get a lot of results, I felt like the at-bats were competitive,” Boone said. “And then, since coming back this last time, it’s gotten even better.

“When you have that kind of power, and obviously the opponent’s aware of that, when you can control the zone with it, that’s a dangerous combination. So it’s been great to see. I feel like he’s just in a really good frame of mind and going into the game with a good plan and executing.”

While Boone has insisted that Jones had strong at-bats during his first promotion, the reality is that he looked overmatched at the time, and seems far more comfortable now.

Even Jones acknowledged that on Tuesday, saying his first call-up came with a lot of adjustments to new information, routines and experiences. Being sent back to the minor leagues gave him some time to absorb all that, and he’s returned to the majors with a clearer head.

“It was just confidence that I belong and that I’m a major league player,” Jones said when asked if he’s made any changes since his first promotion. “I think before you get called up for the first time, you always wonder if it’s good enough, and then being here and getting all the support from these guys telling me that it is good enough, and then doubling down on it and being myself is what I’ve been doing.”

Lombard Jr.

Boone didn’t have any update or information on top prospect George Lombard Jr., who left Tuesday’s game at Triple-A with an injury. Lombard, playing shortstop, appeared to hurt his hand or wrist — neither Boone nor a Yankees spokesperson were sure which — on a fourth-inning stolen base attempt and left the game shortly thereafter.

Fried feeling good

Boone said the plan is for Max Fried (bone bruise) to throw another bullpen this weekend. He threw his first one with intensity on Tuesday at Yankee Stadium. Boone added that Fried threw all his pitches on Tuesday and felt good physically on Wednesday.

The latest on Schmidt

Clarke Schmidt (Tommy John surgery) threw a bullpen at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday. Boone didn’t have a set date for when the righty might face live hitters for the first time, but he said Schmidt is still “a couple weeks out.” Schmidt previously said he hoped to face live hitters by the end of the month.

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