HOUSTON — When the Yankees drafted Kyle Higashioka, Jasson Dominguez was 5 years old.
In 2008, as Higashioka was being welcomed into the organization, Aaron Boone was an infielder for the Nationals.
There is not a player who has been around the Yankees organization longer than the catcher, who spent 10 years in the minor leagues before finally getting his major league chance in 2017.
The now 33-year-old, having established himself as a solid, defensively stout catcher, has been a fixture and witnessed change just about everywhere else.
As the Yankees’ youth movement takes hold, change has reached Higashioka, who has not started a game since Austin Wells was called up Friday.
The Yankees want to see what the 24-year-old Wells can do, and Boone suggested Ben Rortvedt would continue to catch Gerrit Cole.
Higashioka and Boone recently talked about the declining playing time, and the catcher appreciated his manager being upfront with him.
“Everybody wants to play, but I think I’ve always just been in the mode of: whatever helps the team win,” Higashioka said before the Yankees’ 6-1 win over the Astros on Sunday night. “They’ve got to see what Wells has got. He’s been playing great in the minor leagues, and he’s definitely an exciting prospect for the future.”
Higashioka’s job has evolved and now includes helping Wells acclimate and learn the pitching staff, for which Wells thanked Higashioka, Rortvedt and Jose Trevino.
It is possible Higashioka is grooming his potential replacement. Wells is trying to run with this opportunity and projects as a stronger bat.
“I figure if I play well enough, I’m going to be fine no matter what,” Higashioka said. “If he plays well enough, he’s going to be great no matter what. As a catcher, our job is tough enough as it is. There’s no need to make it tougher by being at odds with one another.”
Higashioka is in his seventh big-league season with the Yankees, typically serving as a reliable if light-hitting backup.
His defense will likely keep him in the league, and the .669 OPS and 10 home runs with which he entered play are strong enough to earn him playing time in the future.
But with Trevino — an All-Star last year — expected back and at full health for spring training, following a season-ending wrist surgery, and with Wells, a 2020 first-round pick with a reputation for hitting, now emerging, the Yankees will face a difficult decision this offseason with Higashioka.
Higashioka, entering his final season of arbitration, still will be under team control, but the Yankees might see a logjam at the position.
The offense did not produce enough this season, and the club could look to solve that by, they hope, upgrading a bat at catcher.
If these are Higashioka’s last days as a Yankee, he does not want to think about it.
“I just go with the flow,” Higashioka said about his future. “Whatever happens, happens. I just live in the moment as much as I can. The things out of my control, I try not to worry about.”
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