Since the 2024 regular season, the New York Yankees have a new shortstop in Anthony Volpe. He is in his sophomore season. Back in 2023, he showed a lot of promise. He proved to be quite an asset for the team defensively. However, fans raised questions about his at-bats. He needed to improve offensively to make himself a real asset to the team. Eventually, since the start of the ongoing season, the new shortstop has improved a lot offensively. He even had a 22-game hitting streak in May.
Moreover, there were several occasions in the first two months of the current season where the sophomore kid proved that he is a worthy All-Star. Clearly, the Yankees Faithful can agree that Anthony Volpe is the third-best player in the team right now. He is right behind the captain Aaron Judge and the Dominican superstar Juan Soto. However, people can wonder how good Volpe can get in the future.
There’s A Rising Doubt About Anthony Volpe As A Future Cornerstone For The Yankees
Lately, Joel Sherman of the New York Post pointed out that Anthony Volpe has been a worthy supporting actor to the two megastars – Aaron Judge and Juan Soto. Moreover, the New York writer said Volpe has clearly been the best player in the team after the two megastars. On top of that, the Yankees expected the sophomore kid to be a cornerstone. However, Sherman added that there are doubts rising lately regarding how good Volpe is going to be. Moreover, the NY side might not be okay with their shortstop being the 10th-best in the major league. Volpe might even be the 15th-best shortstop in MLB right now. Back in May, when the sophomore Yankee was enjoying a 22-game hitting streak, fans wondered if he was on the Bobby Witt Jr. trajectory.
Witt had a promising but flawed debut season and followed that with a sophomore season of stardom. Then, from the third season, he just kept getting better. However, Anthony Volpe does not look like having an All-Star season anymore. Albeit, he did at the start of the 2024 season. At the All-Star break this year, Volpe has the same .666 OPS that he finished with last season. But he has a better batting average than his debut season. Moreover, Volpe leads the league in innings played in the field. Hence, he is durable. On Sunday, he had a major miscue, but he is strong on defense.
How Fast The Sophomore Kid Needs To Catch Up?
Everybody loves Anthony Volpe within the Yankees organization because of his team-first nature and diligence. Moreover, Aaron Boone has always been quick to defend Volpe, saying, “He is just 23.” Boone means the shortstop has a lot of time to get better. However, Bobby Witt Jr. is just 14 months older than the Yankees sophomore kid. Moreover, Witt is on the list of potential candidates who can win AL MVP this year, alongside Aaron Judge, Juan Soto and Gunnar Henderson.
On top of that, both Witt and Henderson made it to the All-Star game this year. Even other shortstops in their age 23 seasons, like CJ Abrams and Elly De La Cruz, also made it to the All-Star game. Hence, questions are rising, like where Volpe stands among his peers in the MLB.
Stay tuned with Sports News International for more such updates about your favorite MLB team.
