New York Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe has struggled for the majority of the campaign. Still, manager Aaron Boone recently insisted that a stint in Triple-A would be out of the question.
“First of all, he’s a more productive offensive player than he gets credit for,” Boone told Chris Kirschner of The Athletic. “We just hammer the struggles, because, on some level, there were people that anointed him and expected so much. Even though he hasn’t come close to realizing what we expect and what he expects offensively — and acknowledging a few weeks this year where he struggled even defensively — he’s still a frontline defensive player at a premium position that is offensively somewhat productive.
“Now, obviously, he’s had a 10-day stretch here where he’s gone from over a .700 OPS four months into the year to below. We want to send that guy down? What planet does that guy get sent down that’s a shortstop? I don’t know that planet.”
Across 132 games this season, Volpe has posted a .668 OPS. According to Baseball Savant, he ranks in the fourth percentile in Batting Run Value and the 17th percentile in xBA.
His defense has also been a topic of discussion throughout the season. The 24-year-old ranks in the 18th percentile in Fielding Run Value and only the fifth percentile in Range.
Boone has continued to support Volpe during what has been a challenging season and has not signaled that his confidence in the young shortstop has wavered.
“I think we’ll get him through this,” Boone said. “I don’t think he should be sent down. I think mentally and emotionally, he’s so much better equipped to handle this than people might imagine. I don’t think he’s getting banged down by this. I’ve never seen that out of him. I’ve never felt that way where this guy needs a break, which could pop up with a player that maybe has been a good player who now needs a timeout. I don’t feel that way.”
