Anthony Volpe is having a season like no other major leaguer, but not in a good way. The former Gold Glove winner was not expected to have a season for the ages, but nobody anticipated the inconsistent defense.
The first half of 2025 was a sloppy mess for Volpe, but his second half has shown that he can barrel the ball. He might’ve replaced his golden glove defense with a hot bat. The New York Yankees can now only hope that this hot streak will continue for the shortstop and that he can mitigate the defensive woes.
During his rookie year, the media placed a lot of pressure on Volpe. He was a kid from New Jersey who played shortstop and loved the Yankees. Sounds a lot like a former Yankees shortstop who became a Hall of Famer.
The pressure was already on for Volpe in 2023, but he blocked out the noise. He turned himself into a great defensive shortstop, which made up for the .209 batting average. Fans didn’t mind the lackluster offense and trusted the growing pains that came with being a rookie on the Yankees.
Volpe was also coming off of only playing a handful of games in Triple-A, and so his development would be coming in the major leagues.
Volpe fielding percentage was at .970 with only 17 errors committed. He ranked second among all shortstops in the American League with defensive runs saved with 15.
Most young players in the league are supposed to show improvement throughout their careers. While Volpe had a generally average season in 2024, there were expectations that he would start to make a turn towards the upside in his third year.
What happened instead for the 24-year-old was a regression unlike anything seen before. From a less-than-stellar performance on offense to even worse defense, he’s become a mess through the first half of 2025.
Volpe’s fielding percentage is at .960, and 134 putouts. With 48 games remaining, the fielding percentage has had a subtle drop.
A fielding percentage of .960 may sound good, but the league average is .986. Volpe is underperforming on the defensive end, and it’s showing through his excessive errors. He is currently leading the league in errors with 16.
The post-All-Star Break has been an intriguing one for Volpe. Before the second half of the season, he had a WRC+ of 86 with ten home runs and batted .214. Since the beginning of the second half of the season, he’s been on fire.
In the last 19 games, Volpe has a WRC+ of 146, batting .254, 17 hits, and seven home runs. The sudden hot streak has come out of nowhere, but the Yankees fans would like to believe that he listened to the words of a former All-Star.
In a recent interview, Alex Rodriguez discussed the Yankees’ struggles and shared some wise words about their shortstop. Rodriguez mentioned that Volpe had to stop trying to be a home run hitter and focus on just getting contact.
Trying to hit the ball hard has afflicted Volpe and the entire Yankees offense. Since the All-Star Break, the mentality looked to have switched for him.
In his last 18 games, Volpe focused on making more contact with the baseball rather than forcing it out of the park. Putting the ball in play had resulted in 17 hits, and he let the power come to him rather than trying to force it out of his bat.
Volpe showed promise during his rookie season and had a narrative that every Yankees fan and their mother loved. This season has turned from a dream to a nightmare for the young Yankee, but things may turn around for him.
Since the start of the second half, his defense has not been atrocious, and it may be because of a leveled-up confidence at the plate. With the Yankees now in third place in the AL East, Volpe’s bat might have heated up at the right time.
Yankees fans can hope that their shortstop will get it going for himself and the team. If he does, he’ll get the pressure of being the next Derek Jeter off his shoulders and come into his own as a shortstop.
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