Jasson Domínguez didn’t show up late to the Águilas Cibaeñas. He showed up prepared.
According to journalist @ElTioElie, the outfielder spent time working privately with hitting instructor Willis Otáñez before joining the team for LIDOM 2026-27 — a deliberate choice to get his swing right before stepping into the batter’s box, not a delay without purpose. The immediate payoff: two doubles in four at-bats in his November 3 debut, part of an 8-3 Águilas win over the Tigres del Licey at Estadio Cibao.
Why the Timing Makes Sense
The Águilas had acquired Domínguez from the Leones del Escogido on March 14, 2026, but he didn’t join the roster when the season opened. The reason, per @ElTioElie, was intentional: use that window to work on his mechanics with a private instructor before competing in winter ball.
The context behind that decision matters. Domínguez wrapped up the 2026 MLB season with the Yankees posting a .225 average and a .635 OPS — numbers that fell well short of what was expected from the prospect once nicknamed El Marciano in the minors. That OPS sits roughly 90 points below the American League average for a regular hitter. Seeking a mechanical reset before playing makes complete sense.
Who Is Willis Otáñez?
Otáñez is a former infielder from Cotuí who played in MLB with the Baltimore Orioles and Toronto Blue Jays between 1998 and 1999. Today he runs the Willis Otáñez Baseball Academy in Union City, New Jersey. The tweet from @ElTioElie identifies him as a former hitting instructor for Albert Pujols and credits him with the development of catching prospect Rainiel Rodríguez — though both connections have not been independently verified and should be treated as attributed claims.
The Rodríguez angle, if confirmed, is the strongest piece of evidence for Otáñez’s current relevance. The 19-year-old Cardinals catching prospect finished the 2026 season with a combined line of .324/.413/.574 across High-A and Double-A, with 27 home runs and a .987 OPS. Baseball America named him the Cardinals’ Minor League Player of the Year, and FanGraphs ranked him the No. 21 overall prospect in baseball.
Two Games, Real Contact
The debut on November 3 was clean: two doubles, two runs scored, one RBI in the 8-3 win. The following night, in a 12-7 ten-inning loss to the Estrellas Orientales, Domínguez drove in two more runs.
Two games is too small a sample to draw conclusions from. But the contact was real, and the swing — from what was visible — didn’t look like one belonging to a hitter still searching for answers mid-game.
Domínguez spoke to reporters after the November 4 game on Acento TV, discussing his preparation before joining the team. Whether he mentioned Otáñez by name in that interview could not be confirmed from the available footage.
What is clear is the narrative: Domínguez arrived with a plan. That’s what winter ball is for — a reset before spring training. If the adjustments with Otáñez translate into an OPS that looks more like the prospect everyone expected, this story will have a follow-up in February.
