The New York Yankees feature plenty of star-power. Aaron Judge, Juan Soto, and Gerrit Cole will probably all make the 2024 American League All-Star team if they stay healthy. All three players are superstars without question. The addition of Soto certainly makes New York's lineup much more intimidating.
There is one player, however, who may be poised for a breakout season. This player is going to make an All-Star case for himself if he lives up to his potential. 2024 might just be Anthony Volpe's year.
The statistics don't tell the entire story
Volpe did not have a great season statistically speaking in 2023. He entered the season as one of the most exciting prospects in the sport, but ultimately slashed just .209/.283/.383/. Volpe did record a 20-20 season, smashing 20 long balls and stealing 24 bases across 159 games.
According to Baseball Reference, the Yankees shortstop struck out in 27.8 percent of his at-bats a season ago. He had a .259 BAbip (batting average on balls in play) as well, so Volpe was not exactly the luckiest player in the game.
Volpe did record a 43 percent hard-hit rate. He features the ability to square the baseball up on a consistent basis. If Volpe can cut down his strikeouts and improve his discipline at the plate, his batting average, OBP, and slugging percentage will all increase immensely.
It's one thing to just look at the stats and claim he will be better. But what is Volpe doing to improve his game?
Anthony Volpe making changes for 2024 season
Volpe, 22, wants to limit his strikeouts in 2024. He knows he's capable of recording better results.
“I’ve dedicated my whole life to being the type of hitter that I’m capable of being and if I’m not up to those standards, I’ll try to corner them,” Volpe said recently, per Randy Miller of nj.com. “But even if the (striking out) wasn’t as bad as it was, I’d still feel like I wasn’t living up to what I’m capable of.”
So how is Volpe's swing different? He broke down his approach this spring, via Miller as well.
“I don’t know if I necessarily say I have a flatter bat path, but I want to be on path for as many pitches as I can,” Volpe said. “I want to stay on the ball. I want to cover more of the plate and feel like they’ve given me good ideas on what pitches I can and can’t handle.”
Containing an uphill swing is important. Volpe doesn't think he “necessarily” has a “flatter bat path”, but it does seem like a point of emphasis for him is to make sure he's attacking the ball in the zone. So a flatter swing overall appears to be a goal. Yankees manager Aaron Boone shutdown concerns about Volpe's swing change potentially impacting his power numbers in a negative manner, via Greg Joyce of the New York Post.
“I don’t think so, no, because his strength is his strength,” Boone said recently. “Overall, he was a very good fastball hitter, just fastball down last year. But hopefully this puts him in a better position to handle that, be better in certain areas that got exposed. But then it also puts you in better position to handle the mistake off-speed pitch that shows up that a lot of times is a ball you can hit for an extra-base hit or out of the ballpark.”
Being able to hit pitches up in the zone is important. That is especially true in today's game, as pitchers are consistently firing 98-plus MPH heaters at the letters. It's difficult to catch up to that with an upper-cut swing.
Volpe's change is working so far in spring training. He is currently slashing .391/.462/.522 this spring to go along with a .984 OPS. I mentioned that plate discipline will be important moving forward, and Volpe has displayed improvement in that area with three walks already.
Will Anthony Volpe join other Yankees stars at 2024 All-Star Game?
Volpe went 20-20 in a down season to begin his big league career. His spring training changes and performance indicate that a bounce back campaign is on the horizon.
So if Volpe is even better in 2024, perhaps he will hit 25-plus home runs and steal 25-plus bags. He might even go 30-30.
I fully expect his slash line to improve. Volpe's new swing is going to lead to more contact, which will raise his batting average. And hitters often grow more disciplined as they gain big league experience so the OBP is going to also increase.
It will be interesting to see what Volpe's power output looks like in 2024. Boone is confident that Volpe will continue to take strides forward in the power department for the Yankees.
In the end, it is difficult not to believe in Anthony Volpe with the 2024 regular season right around the corner.
Follow Us
Subscribe