Hal Steinbrenner, the owner of the New York Yankees, has confirmed that the team has no plans of sending shortstop Anthony Volpe to the minor leagues despite his struggles at the plate. Speaking at the MLB headquarters ahead of the owners’ meetings, Steinbrenner said that the team has had “zero conversations” about such a move. Volpe, who is 22 years old, has been hitting .186/.260/.345 with nine homers and 1.0 bWAR in 67 games. Despite this, Steinbrenner has reiterated that he told Volpe that he would be the starting shortstop of the New York Yankees for the entire season, regardless of his performance. Steinbrenner added, “This isn’t a three-week trial. So you’re going to be that through the ups and through the potential downs, and there probably will be downs.”
Anthony Volpe’s Struggles
Although Anthony Volpe has struggled with his hitting all year, his recent struggles with his glove have also become a cause for concern. He has three outs below average and ranks among the worst defenders at the position. This has led some fans to call for the promotion of infield prospect Oswald Peraza, who is currently having a strong season in Triple-A. Peraza is hitting .311 with 10 home runs, 21 RBIs, 21 runs, and a .980 OPS with the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders. However, Steinbrenner expressed his faith in Volpe and his belief that he will turn things around. Steinbrenner said, “Well, you never know, but right now [Peraza’s] at Triple-A. He’s having a good year. We’ll see. I wasn’t sure at the beginning of the season that either one of them would be starting for us. I knew they were coming and I knew they were coming strong, but I don’t believe I was ever out there saying it with the plan to have both of them playing at the beginning of 2023.”
The Yankees’ Plans for the Trade Deadline
With the trade deadline approaching, the Yankees are expected to make some moves. Steinbrenner confirmed that the team will be looking to add players but did not specify whether they would prioritize pitching or hitting. This comes as the team is currently facing an injury situation, with outfielders Aaron Judge and Harrison Bader and pitcher Carlos Rodon all on the injured list. Steinbrenner said, “I’m not trying to decoy, but I mean, we still got a ways to go to the trade deadline. We’ve got to see when Rodon comes back. Right now, he’s on schedule; everything’s looking good. We got to see if [Luis Severino] stays healthy. So that’s a question for four weeks from now.” Steinbrenner also commented on last year’s trade deadline, saying that the team’s acquisitions did not work out as well as they hoped but that it would not affect the team’s aggressiveness at this year’s deadline. Steinbrenner said, “No, it hasn’t worked out. But again, our process, we’re pretty thorough, and we talked to a lot of people. With pitchers, you’re always going to take a chance on injuries, but we just felt that we needed to make those moves to get us over the hump.”
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