Anthony Volpe is in a huge slump, leaving New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone with a very tough choice. With top prospect George Lombard Jr. playing great in the minor leagues and veteran Jose Caballero offering a steady option, Boone has to decide who will play shortstop. Volpe’s recent struggles might force Boone to bench his young star.

“Volpe’s time with the Yankees may be limited regardless of performance. By next season, No. 1 prospect George Lombard Jr. could be the Yankees’ starting shortstop, maybe by Opening Day,” NJ.com’s Randy Miller reported.

Last year, the Yankees gave Volpe enough chances. Despite a .212 average at the plate and 19 errors, he had a place in the lineup. The Yankees GM Brian Cashman and manager Aaron Boone publicly and privately maintained their faith in Volpe’s future. They preferred to give him continuous major-league “runway” rather than damage his confidence by sending him down to the minors. “He’s still a top shortstop,” Boone defended Volpe last July.

However, this year, his form has gotten worse. He is batting a poor .194 with two errors in limited time.

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One of the reasons for not tinkering with Volpe’s place was the lack of depth. Although Caballero was traded by July, he then led the league in stolen bases with 49 bases. Boone still put his faith in his regular shortstop, Volpe. This year, the scene is different. Caballero started the year at shortstop and hit .258 with five homers. Moreover, the emergence of Lombard makes Boone spoilt for choice.

Lombard recently got promoted to Triple-A. While his first 27 games went low-key with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, hitting only .184, he rebounded in the last 10 games, hitting .297 after a 2-for-5 night against Lehigh Valley on Wednesday. Lombard also dwarfs Volpe in terms of errors. He made only six errors from 167 appearances at shortstop and currently stands with a .964 fielding %.

“Even early on when he wasn’t, the underlying stuff was good,” Boone agreed. “He was walking a ton and squaring the ball up quite a bit. It has been good to see him get some more consistent results over the last couple of weeks. My understanding is he’s playing really well.”

In comparison, Volpe currently stands with a .985 fielding %. His costly throwing error at the bottom of the third inning against the Cleveland Guardians on Wednesday proved once more how his time with the Yankees may be coming to an abrupt end. But it is Boone’s view that the Yankees are continuing with both Volpe and Caballero at shortstop. 

Boone is yet to decide between Anthony Volpe and Jose Caballero

Despite Caballero’s better numbers than Volpe at shortstop, Caballero has played five games since his return from injury. In between, Volpe started at shortstop in 10 games.

“Obviously, being able to move Jose around a little bit gives you some added flexibility there,” Boone added. “They both, in a lot of ways, deserve to be playing there, and I’ll continue to just try and do what’s best for the team.”

So, the Yankees would see any of them on a day-to-day basis.

Similar to last year, Boone can’t stop defending Volpe despite his recent struggles on defense.

“I see talent. I see a tough kid that works his butt off that’s not afraid of that noise,” Boone said via The Show with Joel Sherman and Jon Heyman. “He (Volpe) hasn’t found the way to the level he expects yet and that we expect him to get to, but he’s also still a very young player who’s had a lot of real success.”

The team’s infield decisions will only get harder. Giancarlo Stanton is coming back from injury soon. Also, there are questions about Jazz Chisholm Jr. staying with the team. Because of this, Boone might have to move Volpe to second base to keep Caballero in the lineup.

So, while Lombard could make his debut next year at shortstop, Boone must decide whether to demote Volpe or change his position.