Anthony Volpe’s future has become one of the biggest questions hanging over the Yankees as the MLB trade deadline approaches, and the answer may come as soon as Monday.
The shortstop’s every move is under a microscope now. For Yankees fans, he’s gone from a player to watch to the player they can’t stop watching, and the scrutiny has only grown after a rough stretch of mistakes and missed chances.
An American League scout who has tracked the Yankees closely this season summed up the mixed bag this way: “Volpe has some skills, anyone who says otherwise just has it in for him,” the scout said. “The problem is that he’s inconsistent in everything he does.”
That inconsistency showed up in a span of three games. On Sunday against the Phillies, Volpe made a wild throw past first base in the sixth inning, an error that helped open the door to an 11-4 loss on national TV.
Then on Monday, he dropped a pop-up with two outs in the ninth inning against the White Sox. The play should have sealed a Yankees win. Instead, it pushed the game into extra innings, forcing New York to use closer David Bednar before the Yankees finally held on.
Thursday brought another tough night. In the Yankees’ second straight extra-inning loss to Chicago, Volpe went 0-for-5 and came up with a chance to change the game in the 11th inning.
With runners on second and third and two outs, he had an opportunity to break a 1-1 tie against Seranthony Dominguez. Instead, after working the count to 2-2, he fouled off a fastball down the middle and then chased a sweeper, grounding out to third to end the inning.
The White Sox won in the bottom half.
Volpe’s struggles are not the only reason the Yankees sit 3.5 games behind the Rays, and his .248 average is actually 23 points better than his career mark. His .979 fielding percentage is also the best of his career. But the disappointment around him has never really gone away.
He hasn’t matched the expectations that come with being a first-round pick, and the sense is that the Yankees rushed him to the majors in 2023 after giving him only a half-season at Triple-A in 2022.
Still, the bigger issue now is what happens next. General manager Brian Cashman is working on multiple major trades from the team’s southern base in Tampa, and Volpe could be part of one of those deals.
He could be gone by Monday night. If not, he may simply remain in place once the deadline passes.
Even if that happens, his long-term future in the middle of the Yankees’ infield looks shaky. George Lombard Jr. is expected to replace him at shortstop at some point, though Yankees executives are still debating whether that call comes in August, September or 2027. Either way, Lombard is viewed as the eventual answer.
That leaves Volpe with another possible path: a move to second base. The Yankees have discussed turning him into Jazz Chisholm’s replacement there if Chisholm leaves in free agency after this season. Volpe has the range, athleticism and three-quarter arm slot to make the transition.
The scout believes a change of scenery could help him even more. “You take that kid, put him in a place like Kansas City, and I bet he’ll end up with a solid career.”
That kind of move would run against Volpe’s own story. He grew up a Yankees fan, and taking over the position once held by Derek Jeter was the dream. But that dream has also made life harder in the Bronx, where the franchise’s history can crush young players as quickly as it lifts them.
The scout’s view is that Volpe will still have a career. The question is whether it happens in pinstripes. For the Yankees, the deadline may be the moment they decide whether to keep trying to make it work - or send him somewhere he can finally breathe.
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