Among the many problems the Yankees face heading into their Subway Series matchup with the Mets includes the production, or lack thereof, they are receiving from rookie shortstop Anthony Volpe.
The 22-year-old won the starting job with a sensational spring training but has become a hole in the Yankees lineup, hitting a slash line of .186/.260/.345 with a .605 OPS as many fans and media have begun speculating if it’s time to send Volpe to Triple-A.
But Yankees manager Aaron Boone says sending Volpe to the minors is not something that is currently being discussed.
“What I’m seeing, in my opinion, is a guy that is still helping us win games,” Boone told the ‘Talkin’ Yanks’ podcast on Tuesday. “I’m confident [he] will continue to be in the middle of helping us to win games. As long as I continue to see that and continue to see him deal with the ups and downs the way you’d hope, I feel a lot of confidence with him still.”
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Volpe has certainly had some big hits for the Yankees this season, but his .260 on-base percentage ranked worst among qualifying hitters entering Tuesday and his seven errors were tied for fifth-most among American League shortstops.
“The thing I’m seeing is a guy so far is completely equipped to handle it all and has,” Boone said. “He hasn’t changed how he’s gone about things, how his daily interactions are. There’s obviously frustration when you don’t have success when you want it, and he’s competitive as heck so he has those moments where, in the moment, he’s ticked off. But that’s all part of it.”
Making the conversation around Volpe more intense is also the fact that Oswald Peraza, whom Volpe beat out for the starting job in spring training, has been having a very successful season in Triple-A.
But Boone says handling the adversity in the majors is part of the reason why Volpe made the Opening Day roster.
“I don’t think anything has changed from a confidence standpoint,” Boone added. “He’s human so I’m sure he feels the – trying to make adjustments and going through struggles. But again, as much as there was understandable buzz around it in spring training and the excitement of it all, one of the main reasons we decided it was time because we totally felt he was totally equipped to handle inevitable growing pains and adversity and he has shown he has been able to handle that.”
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