In the box score, it wasn’t the home debut Yankees’ top prospect Anthony Volpe would’ve liked. Sure, Somerset scored a walk-off 2-1 win, but Volpe, the leadoff hitter and shortstop, struck out three times and was hit by a pitch in his home debut with the Yankees’ Double-A affiliate.
But, none of that mattered for one night at least, for it was his first game back in the Garden State since he finished his career at Delbarton School in 2019 – and Volpe had more than 100 family and friends among the over 5,000 who packed TD Bank Ballpark in Bridgewater, less than 10 miles from his hometown of Watchung, on Tuesday night.
“This is such a cool, surreal moment to get the opportunity to play at home,” Volpe told the assembled media on Tuesday night. “To look at the future would take away from how unique this opportunity is. I’m just lucky I have a really supportive family and they come out whenever they can. It’s nice to have that support system, and it’s something I know I can rely in.”
Volpe, who is staying in the family home (along with a couple teammates) while playing in Somerset, is at Double-A after a breakout 2020 season across two levels of A-ball that made him the No. 1 prospect in the Yankees organization and a consensus Top 15 prospect in baseball.
So heralded are he and Oswald Peraza, it seems, that the Yankees eschewed the biggest free agent shortstop class ever in favor of trading for Isiah Kiner-Falefa, more or less a stopgap until Volpe or Peraza (who is at Triple-A) are ready.
The 0-for-3 dropped Volpe to 3-for-15 (.200) with six strikeouts this season, but, to be fair, the jump to Double-A is considered the hardest other than the jump to the Majors.
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Still, both Volpe and his skipper are confident it’s just a bump in the road.
“Not to put a timetable on it, but he’s so talented. He’s knocking on the door,” said Somerset manager Dan Fiorito, himself a former Baby Bomber. “It’s easy to forget he’s 20 years old, but the way he goes about his business, it’s like he’s ready for it already.”
“I’m confident in myself, but I feel like the debut isn’t really my goal – it’s to be a successful player and help the Yankees win a World Series,” Volpe added. “I would like to say that I’m really far from my ceiling, which is motivating and a good thing. I wouldn’t want to be too close to the best player I could be. I’ve got a lot more work to do.”
And, even if he never moves any farther, at least one person thinks he’s already made it.
“I tell him all the time, ‘Anthony, if you don’t play another game, how many people can say they played Double-A ball for the Yankees?’” Dr. Michael Volpe, Anthony’s father, told NJ.com’s Brendan Kuty. “Just go out there and have fun.”
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