Anthony Volpe's ‘defensive slump' can't continue past trade deadline

New York Times

5 days ago

NEW YORK — The boos were louder than ever, and they rained down on New York Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe, who shook his head as he walked to the mound. He had just made his second error — a throw that should have sealed the victory with the final out in the ninth inning but bounced short of first base. It cranked up the spotlight on a defensive stretch so bad that his manager, who often shields him from criticism, couldn't continue to talk past it.
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Despite the mistake, the Yankees still escaped with a much-needed 7-5 win over the Tampa Bay Rays at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday night, cutting their deficit in the American League East to four games. Volpe had helped in the process, his flare single driving in a go-ahead run before he stole third base and scored on the catcher's errant throw in the fourth inning. He also hit a 452-foot home run to center field in the eighth inning.
But Volpe's mistakes were the talk after the game, the way they have been for weeks, as he has racked up 15 errors, tying him with the Cincinnati Reds' Elly De La Cruz for the most among all position players. It has been a stunning defensive stumble for Volpe, who won the American League Gold Glove as a rookie in 2023 and was among the best at the position last year. And it has come as his offensive production has taken a major step backward, with a .216 batting average, 15 home runs, 57 RBIs and a .694 OPS.
Volpe owned up to his poor glove work.
'I've got to make those plays,' he said. 'Obviously.'
Manager Aaron Boone referred to the plays that resulted in errors as ones Volpe has 'got' to make. He added that the 24-year-old appears to be amid a 'defensive slump.'
'We've got to get over it,' he said. 'We've got to get through it.'
Second error for Volpe on the night pic.twitter.com/8ORPRFB5fG
— Talkin' Yanks (@TalkinYanks) July 30, 2025
The Yankees don't have much choice other than to trust that Volpe will figure it out. The trade deadline is at 6 p.m. ET Thursday. All indications are that the Yankees won't try to shop for a new shortstop. They seem bent on adding pitching in the bullpen and to the starting rotation. They already beefed up third base with trades for Ryan McMahon and Amed Rosario.
In Volpe, they expected to have their shortstop of the future after drafting him in the first round out of high school in 2019, and he shot through their farm system and beat out current backup infielder Oswald Peraza for the starting job in spring training two years ago.
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Back then, some outside the organization thought Volpe would be a bat-first shortstop who might have to move to second base because of a weak throwing arm. Instead, before this season, he had been one of the game's better defenders at the position while his bat lagged behind the Yankees' projections. Now both ends of his game are faltering as the Yankees, up one game for the top spot in the wild-card race, fight for playoff positioning with star Aaron Judge (flexor tendon strain) on the injured list.
The Yankees don't have better options than Volpe. Peraza is a good defender but hasn't shown he can hit in the majors. Rosario hasn't played shortstop regularly since 2023, and he's not considered a good defender overall. Top prospect George Lombard Jr. is just 20 and playing at Double A.
But could Volpe at least use a break for a game or two?
'I'm not going to answer that now,' Boone said. 'We just ended the game.'
Volpe appeared out of sorts on both of his miscues Tuesday. In the first inning, his poor flip to second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. from behind the bag eventually led to two runs scoring.
'Just led Jazz too much,' Volpe said.
In the ninth, he fielded a routine grounder from the slow-running Yandy Díaz and took an extra half-second to gather himself before throwing to first baseman Paul Goldschmidt. The throw was short, Goldschmidt couldn't pick it, and Taylor Walls moved to third base.
'I've just got to hit him in the chest,' Volpe said.
Then pinch runner Jake Mangum stole second base before closer Devin Williams fanned Jonathan Aranda to end the game.
Volpe said he has 'never really experienced' a defensive slump before.
'But I've got really good guys around me, and I know what I'm capable of,' he said. 'It's obviously frustrating, but it's not discouraging. But I know the standard that I have for myself, and I'm just going to keep pushing until I just prove it to myself every day.'
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Boone said there wasn't much more Volpe could do to fix himself. He said Volpe puts in more than enough work before games.
'You've got to just play,' said Boone, who played third base in the majors for 12 years. 'You don't want to get caught up in that. I've been there before, where you don't want to make a mistake. That's the worst place to be. The end of the day, his confidence should come from the quality of the work and who he is as a defender, and that should be an elite defender, and we need to get him there, and he needs to get through this.'
Especially considering that for the Yankees, there's nobody else.
(Photo of Anthony Volpe and Rays shortstop Taylor Walls: Vincent Carchietta / Imagn Images)