TAMPA, Fla. — Anthony Volpe watched two strikes by Steven Matz to start Thursday against the Cardinals in Jupiter. But the Yankees’ impressive rookie hit back, pushing the veteran left-hander nine pitches before leaping out.
The at-bat was symbolic of Volpe’s first major league spring training session. He started with the odds stacked against him in a contest for the starting shortstop role, going up against reigning Isiah Kiner-Falefa and fellow rookie Oswald Peraza, who has more experience than Volpe. But Volpe performed better and stayed longer than many in the Yankees camp expected.
And about a week into Opening Day, Volpe had some high-level voices within the organization backing his candidacy, several people with knowledge of the team’s hiring decisions told The Athletic. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak in public. Many stressed that the club were determined to field the best possible team for the opening day – and that Volpe’s strong debut, coupled with Peraza’s struggles, could put the New Jersey native at the top.
However, they warned that nothing has been decided yet and a decision could come down to the last minute, with roster builds possibly playing a role. The Yankees are overflowing with big-league midfielders, and sending Volpe down early in the season might be their easiest way to buy them time to decide the fate of others.
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After going batless in four tries Thursday, Volpe hit .279 with two homers, a .404 percent on base and a .939 OPS in 43 at-bats. Typically, the Yankees’ philosophy is to use spring training stats only as a small part of the equation when evaluating a player’s readiness for the regular season. But Peraza – the suspected favorite – has struggled his way to a .607 OPS in 35 at-bats, and Kiner-Falefa seems all but out of contention, having not started a game at shortstop since March 8 has. An opposing scout speculated that it appeared the Yankees were giving Volpe every opportunity to win the job. Another talent reviewer suggested that with center fielder Harrison Bader (oblique) absent early in the season, the Yankees might also like how Volpe’s speed makes him a threat on bases. Volpe stole 50 bases between Double-A Somerset and Triple A last season.
Volpe has also impressed with his maturity and has received public praise from captain Aaron Judge.
Volpe began his pre-spring prep here in late November at the Yankees’ player development complex. All winter DJ LeMahieu found himself in hitting groups, taking on Grounder with the prospect of The Athletic’s Keith Law being the eighth best in the game.
“Seems like he worked really hard,” LeMahieu said. “Just some kind of baseball rat. No wonder he’s having a good spring.”
LeMahieu said Volpe didn’t take shortcuts.
“There are guys who break into the offseason and then there are guys who strive for it,” said the 34-year-old. “He really wanted to have a good spring.”
LeMahieu added, “He’ll be more than prepared whenever he’s called out. That’s for sure.”
Special Guest Instructor Willie Randolph, a former Yankees captain and second baseman, said he was “impressed with[Volpe’s]game for a young player, his instincts that you can’t really teach.”
“He’s in a position right now where, depending on what they do with him, he’s not going to be really tough (mentally),” Randolph continued. “So from what I’ve seen and who I’ve spoken to, it seems like he has a good understanding of it. But until you’ve been through it, you don’t know.
“Whether they keep him or not, how he reacts to that – I think he understands enough of the situation he’s in to know that he won’t let it bother him.”
(Photo: Nathan Ray Seebeck / USA Today)