“If the team starts losing when he’s inserted back at shortstop, it’s going to be his fault, whether it’s his fault or not.” New York Yankees broadcaster Michael Kay warned in April about calling Anthony Volpe to the lineup. A series of injuries forced Aaron Boone to recall Volpe, but after his 19 games this season, Kay’s warning seems to be coming true. As Volpe stands at 3-for-30 after facing the Cleveland Guardians on Tuesday, Yankees broadcasters offer a brutal reality check.

“You just wonder how long that runway’s gonna be for Anthony with the way he’s struggled at the plate now for an extended stretch.” Ryan Ruocco said from the booth during Tuesday’s game against the Guardians. “Obviously an issue. Obviously, the spotlight is on,” David Cone agreed.

Volpe is currently hitting .190 and has scored just 1 homer so far. His only homer came against the Kansas City Royals on May 26, and since then, there’s been nothing. His first game back with the Yankees in May was marred by a fielding error on a ground ball up the middle against the Orioles. While Volpe has stayed errorless since then, it still doesn’t hide his struggles.

On Tuesday, Volpe didn’t even wait to hit. He swung at the first pitch for a flyball in the infield, ending the inning. The Yankees’40-26 record may be allowing Boone to be more flexible with Volpe, but in the absence of Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, and Jasson Dominguez, Volpe’s 3-for-30 is difficult to justify. But Boone keeps on defending him. “I see talent,” Boone said. “I see a tough kid that works his butt off that’s not afraid of that noise. He hasn’t found his way to the level he expects yet, which we expect him to get to. But he’s also still a very young player who has had a lot of real success as a young shortstop for the New York Yankees.”

The Yankees may be repeating the same scene with Anthony Volpe from last year. Volpe’s 2025 resume includes league-leading 19 errors, a .212 offense, and a torn left labrum surgery by the year-end. However, despite such struggles, Volpe had Aaron Boone’s backing throughout the year. “We just hammer the struggles because, on some level, there were people that anointed him and expected so much,” Boone defended Volpe last August. But nothing helped.

Jose Caballero’s .253 batting makes him an automatic choice at shortstop. Volpe would be in the lineup till the time the Yankees are not getting back their injured names. But if Volpe’s struggle continues and any of the injured names come back, chances are high that he will hit the minors again. For now, though, Boone is at the receiving end of his Volpe-Caballero management.

The Yankees continue to push Anthony Volpe over Caballero

Caballero started the year at shortstop when Volpe was rehabbing. Before Caballero was sidelined with a fractured finger, he was ranked the third-best defensive shortstop in MLB with 5 DRS. It actually forced the Yankees to option Volpe to the minors, only to be called back after a series of injuries. Volpe took over as Caballero faced a finger injury, and it continued even after his return.

Caballero returned to the lineup on May 22. Since then, he has made only 5 starts at shortstop while Anthony Volpe has had 10 starts. “Yeah, maybe,” Boone said about utilizing both Caballero and Volpe at shortstop.

Caballero logged a combined total of 6 OAA, 14 DRS, and a .977 fielding percentage across 114 games defensively in 2025. In comparison, Volpe had 2 DRS, -7 OAA, and -5 FRV last year. Still, Boone is pushing Volpe over Caballero at the shortstop makes us wonder if the same script from last year is getting repeated. Boone may have the flexibility for a few experiments currently, but it may turn out to be costly.