Anthony Volpe started the year at the IL, and when he returned last month, he had a huge task to get over Jose Caballero‘s challenge. Caballero was hitting .255 by May. It was his finger injury that made Volpe come back to the roster after being optioned to the minors.

Volpe still missed the opportunity, hitting .194 with only 1 homer and already made 2 errors since his return. That’s what makes the analysts skeptical about Volpe’s future, as Aaron Boone has a few options, unlike last year. With George Lombard Jr’s name increasingly getting rumored to be the Yankees’ next starting shortstop, Volpe seems to be racing against time to survive.

“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, Volpe had a .212 average at the plate and led the league with 19 errors. Still, 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.

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 5 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 6 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 one more time 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, he has played 5 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.”

Even with Giancarlo Stanton returning soon, Jazz Chisholm’s uncertainty with the Yankees’ qualifying offer could even make Boone place Volpe at second base. So, while Lombard could make his debut next year at shortstop, Anthony Volpe’s demotion is all on Aaron Boone.