From Somerset To The World Series
Bridgewater, New Jersey – Five former Somerset Patriots will suit up for the New York Yankees and live their dream of playing in the World Series beginning Friday, October 25 in Los Angeles.
Bridgewater, New Jersey – Five former Somerset Patriots will suit up for the New York Yankees and live their dream of playing in the World Series beginning Friday, October 25 in Los Angeles.
ANTHONY VOLPE WALK-OFF HOME RUN TO SEND US TO THE POSTSEASON!! pic.twitter.com/zG8hNpbiPx
— Somerset Patriots (@SOMPatriots) June 26, 2022
Anthony Volpe, the Yankees' top prospect in 2022, starred close to home in Somerset, providing clutch moments that included a game-winning walk-off home run that sent the Patriots to the postseason in the final game of the first half. At the time of his promotion to Triple-A in September, Volpe was the team leader in home runs (18), RBI (60), SLG (.472), H (106), 2B (31), 3B (4, T-1st), XBH (53), TB (199), R (71), multi-hit games (26) and SB (44).
Volpe made his MLB debut on 3/30/23 and has been the Yankees everyday shortstop since, becoming the Yankees' first rookie to have a 20-home run and 20-stolen base season, and the first to win the American League Gold Glove Award.
INF Oswaldo Cabrera has been named the Double-A Northeast MVP.
— Somerset Patriots (@SOMPatriots) October 6, 2021
He led the league in hits and RBI, while ranking among the leaders in several other categories.
Congratulations, Oswaldo!
ℹ️ | https://t.co/rjIGXCsIZi@NYYPlayerDev @MiLB pic.twitter.com/es4SHPpeIr
Oswaldo Cabrera wasn’t a name a lot of Yankees fans knew until he put up an MVP season in Double-A Somerset in 2021. The versatile infielder led the league in H (112), RBI (78), XBH (54) and TB (24). He was also among the league leaders in HR (24, 3rd), 2B (29, T-3rd), SB (20, T-5th) and SLG (.492, 10th).
His call up to the Yankees and debut on 8/17/22 added a spark to the team with big moments in the field and at the plate.
Luis Gil was the first player assigned to the Somerset Patriots after being named the @Yankees Double-A affiliate prior to the 2021 season.
— Somerset Patriots (@SOMPatriots) August 31, 2024
Gil started the first game and recorded the first strikeout in Patriots Double-A history on 5/4/21. #RepBX pic.twitter.com/e96KLeQ34R
Luis Gil, the flame-throwing Dominican, was the first player assigned to the Patriots in the partnership with the Yankees and was the Opening Day starter on May 4th. He recorded the first pitch and strikeout of the franchise’s Double-A era. He finished his time in Somerset with a 1-1 record, a 2.64 ERA and 50 strikeouts over 30.2 innings across seven games pitched for the club.
Gil made his MLB debut for the Yankees on 8/3/21 against Baltimore and pitched six scoreless innings with six strikeouts. He started his MLB career on a 15.2 scoreless innings streak, the most of any Yankee pitched since 1961.
Players with championship experience can help a team navigate the big moments on the biggest stage in sports. Two vital members of the Patriots’ 2022 Eastern League Championship team are now Yankees and looking to replicate the same championship production that brought the title to Somerset.
AUSTIN WELLS WITH AN ABSOLUTE LASER!⚡️
— Somerset Patriots (@SOMPatriots) September 27, 2022
The @Yankees No. 4 prospect crushes a three-run homer to put Somerset on the board in the first. pic.twitter.com/dasory6K1D
Austin Wells thrived in Double-A in 2022, where he slashed .261/.360/.479 with 55 H, 8 2B, 12 HR and 43 RBI. He continued to impress in the postseason with a .318/.403/.470 slash line with 5 R, 7 H, 2 2B, a HR and 8 RBI. Wells caught the championship-clinching combined no-hitter in the deciding Game Three. He returned to start 2023, and for his Somerset career, Wells had 109 H, 22 2B, 23 HR and 93 RBI in 113 games played. The 93 RBI were the most of any Eastern League player during that time.
Since his 9/1/23 MLB debut, Wells has been showing Yankees fans the type of player he is and has put himself in the AL “Rookie of the Year” discussion this season with his 13 HR and 55 RBI as the team’s primary catcher over 115 games played.
JASSON DOMINGUEZ IS OUT OF THIS WORLD!👽
— Somerset Patriots (@SOMPatriots) September 28, 2022
The Martian strikes again for his second home run and 5th RBI in the deciding game of the Eastern League Championship Series. #RepBX pic.twitter.com/q50Tmrv7Jr
Jasson Dominguez landed in Somerset at the end of the 2022 season in time for the playoffs. In the postseason, “The Martian” hit three home runs and drove in 10 RBI, including two homers (one from each side of the plate) and six RBI in the clinching Game 3 win. He returned to Somerset in 2023 and was named the Eastern League’s Top MLB Prospect. Dominguez slashed .254/.367/.414 with 15 HR, 66 RBI, 83 R, 77 BB and 37 SB before a brief call up to Triple-A and then making his MLB debut on 9/1/23.
During his first big league at-bat, Dominguez homered off of former Cy Young Award winner and World Series Champion Justin Verlander. He went on to homer in four of his first seven big league games in 2023.
Now with the first World Series Championship since 2009 in sight, the young stars of the organization are looking to help write the next chapter for the Yankees and claim the 28th title in franchise history. In doing so, they would become the first set of players to be crowned World Series Champions in the Somerset Patriots' Double-A era.