Let us stop pretending this is fine. Since August 15, Anthony Volpe has been an automatic out and a liability in the field. The numbers are not just ugly, they are historic in the worst way. .136 AVG, .147 OBP, .242 SLG, .389 OPS, and a negativewRC+. I repeat, negative. I have watched a lot of baseball and I cannot remember the last time I saw a negative wRC plus for a starting player on a team with October dreams. Yet here we are, still watching Volpe trot out to shortstop every single night like nothing is wrong.
Zoom out to the full year and it does not get any better. Volpe’s 2025 line sits at .207 batting average with a .269 on base, .396 slug, and a .665 OPS across 140 games and 498 at bats. He has 103 hits, 19 homers, 70 runs batted in, and 59 runs, with 29 doubles, 4 triples, and 16 steals. He has walked 41 times and struck out 138 times. Those are the cold facts. That is not a playoff level shortstop. That is a bottom of the order drag that turns rallies into stranded runners and gives opposing pitchers a breather in the middle of innings that should snowball in the Yankees favor.
Anthony Volpe’s 19 errors lead the AL. Elly De La Cruz is the only MLB player with more (22).
And if the bat were the only issue, maybe you could squint and say the glove carries him. Except it does not. Volpe made his 19th error of the season against Toronto and now leads the American League in errors. Only Elly De La Cruz has more in the majors with 22. That is not elite defense. That is not even neutral defense. That is negative value at a position where you simply cannot give away outs. The phrase writes itself. Anthony Volpe is the Error King of the American League. The Yankees are trying to win a pennant while starting the Error King at short.
Watch the plays that beat good teams in October. It is the routine grounder turned clean out. It is the throw to the chest at first to finish an inning. It is the double play feed that gets you off the field and puts momentum in your dugout. With Volpe, too often it is the double clutch, the tailing throw, the in between hop that eats the first baseman, the rushed footwork that sprays airmail into the camera well. He is not securing the routine ball. He is not delivering a firm throw to the chest. He is putting extra traffic on the bases for no reason. You cannot survive that when every pitch in October is a coin flip and every baserunner will be cashed by a champion level lineup.
It is wild that any other playoff contender would have already sat this player down, yet the Yankees keep marching forward like this is a long rebuild and not a win right now season. Jasson Domínguez, a young player with real game changing upside, has been pushed aside. Meanwhile, Volpe, who is barely over the Mendoza line and leading shortstops in errors, gets everyday reps like he is a locked in star. How does that make sense in a room that is supposed to be obsessed with winning every game of the season?
Here is the part that really stings. Aaron Boone loves Anthony Volpe. It is obvious. Boone will tell you he believes in the player, the makeup, the future. He will talk about growing pains and trusting the process. He will tell you that defense is more than errors and that the bat will come around. He will say these things while the scoreboard keeps flashing zeros and the infield keeps collecting fresh dents from throws that never should have left the hand. If Boone gets his way, Volpe will start at short in October because Boone believes. A belief is nice in April. A belief can be expensive in October.
There is a difference between development season and trophy season. Development season is where you let a guy fight through it, eat the ugly stretches, and learn. Trophy season is where you ride the hot hand, minimize risk, and put the best nine right now on the field. The Yankees are squarely in trophy season. The math is simple. Since mid August, Volpe has produced like a pitcher at the plate. On defense, he has given teams extra outs. That is two strikes against him before you even get through the anthem. You cannot be the team that hands the opposition free runs and free innings and expects to sip champagne.
So what is the move It is not complicated. Sit him for the postseason and construct a roster that values run prevention and contact over hope and public relations. You need a shortstop who makes the play in front of him and gives your pitchers faith to go attack the zone. You need a nine spot that will not kill rallies or give the opposing starter a stress free lane. If that means using a utility glove first option, do it. If that means flipping the left side and riding the steadier hand, do it. The goal is October survival, not a marketing poster for next year.
Some will say the power is real and the speed is useful. I am not ignoring that. Nineteen homers and sixteen steals have value in a vacuum. The issue is not isolated tools, it is the net effect on winning right now. When the on base is below .270 and the glove is bleeding extra chances, the power and speed get erased by the holes. In October, value is not a highlight clip. It is the hour by hour grind of taking the free pass, moving a runner, making the throw on time, turning the sure double play. Volpe is not delivering that standard. The Yankees cannot afford to wait for a breakout that may not arrive until next spring.
The front office and the dugout love to bet on upside. I get it. They drafted the kid, they marketed the kid, the fans wear his number, and there is a storybook charm when a homegrown shortstop becomes a star. This is not that chapter. This chapter is about ruthlessness. It is about telling the truth in the mirror and building a playoff roster that gives Max Fried, Carlos Rodón, Luis Gil, and the rest of the staff the tightest defense possible behind them. It is about lengthening the lineup so that the eighth and ninth hitter are not automatic. It is about taking away the other team’s hope and replacing it with your own certainty.
“Jose Caballero is their (Yankees) shortstop in the playoffs”
I am not saying bury the kid forever. I am saying the Yankees should be serious about winning the World Series right now. Being serious means making the tough call. Being serious means that favorites sit if they are not producing. Being serious means that every out is sacred, every at bat is premium, and every roster spot is earned in the present tense. Anthony Volpe has had every chance this season. The data screams what our eyes already know. Sit him for October. Put the best run prevention and the most competitive at bats on the field. Give this team the cleanest path to four wins per series. If Boone is truly in love with Volpe, he can write his name in the March lineup. October is for grown results.
Bench Volpe for the playoffs. Protect every out. Hunt every run. Send a message that performance, not promises, dictates who takes the field. That is how you get rings.
Felix Pantaleon is The Founder of NYYNEWS.com The First & Oldest Independent New York Yankees Content Creator Platform, Since 2005.Follow on Social Media
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