Anthony Volpe’s name is going to come up a lot over the next few weeks, and not because the Yankees are suddenly in a rush to hand him more rope.
The quieter reality is this: he may be one of the most attractive trade pieces Brian Cashman has as the Aug. 3 deadline approaches. That sounds backward for a 25-year-old shortstop who once looked like a fixture in the Bronx, but the market around him makes the idea real.
The glove is back to where it used to be. After spending most of 2025 playing through a partially torn left labrum, Volpe had surgery last October and has looked like a different defender this season.
He’s at plus-6 Outs Above Average now after posting minus-6 last year, a 12-run swing in the field. He’s also in the 93rd percentile among big league defenders, a huge step up from the eighth percentile mark he carried a year ago.
That kind of turnaround matters. It matters even more because the rest of the package is still complicated.
Volpe’s bat remains the obstacle. He hit .212 with a .663 OPS in 153 games last season, and this year his contact quality has been ordinary, with an 87.8 mph average exit velocity and a .296 expected weighted on-base average.
His playing time has dipped, too, and he has sat out three of four games during one stretch. The arm is still not a cannon, and it never will be.
Any team that wants him has to accept that. What it gets in return is range, hands, and a shortstop who is only 25.
That profile is exactly why rival clubs should be paying attention. Volpe is signed for $3.48 million this season, doesn’t reach arbitration until 2027, and won’t be a free agent until 2029. For a contender looking for premium defense up the middle at a controlled price, that’s a tempting setup.
The Yankees can even consider moving him because George Lombard Jr. is waiting in the wings. The organization has made it clear how much it likes its top prospect, and Lombard is widely viewed as the shortstop of the future.
Jose Caballero has already been getting significant time at shortstop, and the Yankees have shown they’re willing to build a lineup that doesn’t run through Volpe. They kept him over Spencer Jones earlier this month, but the playing time has told a different story.
If New York does deal him, the return won’t be about offense. It has to be pitching.
The bullpen carried a major league-best 3.04 ERA into the break, but the underlying numbers are shakier, with relievers ranking 16th in strikeout rate at 22.3 percent. Camilo Doval has been a liability, Jake Bird has been ordinary, and the depth behind them got thinner this week.
Cashman laid out the club’s health situation and early deadline thinking on July 10, and the bullpen is the obvious place to attack. High-leverage relief is expensive on the July market, which is why a controllable shortstop can become such a useful trade chip.
There are teams that fit the profile, too. Cleveland, Minnesota, Colorado, and Toronto have all had questions up the middle, and any of them could look at Volpe and see a glove-first answer with years of control.
A few weeks ago, this would have looked like selling low on a struggling player. It doesn’t look that way anymore.
His defense has bounced back, his health is better, and the contract is appealing. The Yankees also have a path ready behind him.
That’s why the next move is so delicate. Volpe’s value is strong now, but it won’t sit still for long.
If the bat stays quiet, the market can soften. If the glove slips, the case gets a lot harder.
For a front office that has spent three years standing behind him, the toughest decision might also be the smartest one.
In Other News...
Yankees Suddenly Look Like They Won The Oswald Peraza Trade
Oswald Perazas move out of the Yankees organization looked like the kind of swap that could be judged over time, and for a while it at least had some early intrigue. He opened the season with a strong stretch against his former club, while the return piece, Wilberson De Pea, was still building his case in the minors and trying to show that the Yankees had not simply moved on from one young infielder for nothing.
De Pea has since given the Yankees plenty to like. The prospect has climbed into the upper tier of the system, now sitting 12th in the Yankees rankings, and his appeal is easy to see in the power and exit velocity that have stood out in the lower minors. For New York, the deal suddenly looks less like a clean break and more like a bet that may already be tilting in the organizations favor, even if the full verdict still has some runway left. [Read more 🡒]
Yankees Just Got Teasing Trade News On A Potential Bullpen Game Changer
The Yankees are still in the thick of the American League East race, but sitting three games back has only sharpened the focus on the trade deadline. At 54-42, they have every reason to keep looking for bullpen help, and the latest chatter suggests they could be in the market for a late-inning arm if the right deal comes together.
One possible fit has already started to generate buzz, with San Diego emerging as a team that could listen if the price is high enough. The catch, of course, is that any move for a reliever of that caliber would likely require a significant return, which is why this feels more like an early signal than a deal on the verge of getting done. [Read more 🡒]
Braves Linked To A Shortstop Gamble Fans Will Instantly Debate
Anthony Volpe is still holding down the Yankees shortstop job, but the conversation around him has only gotten louder. His offensive production and work in the field have drawn plenty of criticism, even as Derek Jeter has said the Yankees are high on Volpes potential and willing to bet on the upside that made him such a prominent part of their future plans.
Not everyone sees that patience as a virtue. Adam Schein has been openly skeptical about whether Volpe is ready for the majors, and the chatter has only sharpened as rival clubs start to enter the picture in trade speculation. With Jose Caballero having looked like an upgrade at shortstop, the Yankees are at least facing a real question about how long they can keep treating Volpe as untouchable. [Read more 🡒]