With Aaron Judge sidelined, the New York Yankees cannot afford Anthony Volpe’s .197 batting average. Still, manager Aaron Boone keeps putting him in the lineup. During the offseason, Boone made it sound like Volpe had to earn his spot. By June, that rule is gone. Fans are furious and asking one simple question: Why does Volpe keep getting the start over Jose Caballero, who was hitting .259 before his injury?

“Volpe is at short today… been really good in the field… in a handful of those games, he’s squared something up… I’ve got a lot of really good options, and Caballero’s played regularly since Volpe’s come up. Everyone can’t start every day,” said Boone in the interview with Jomboy Media, talking about why Volpe is starting at short over Caballero.

Aaron Boone keeps saying he believes in both Anthony Volpe and José Caballero. But his actions continue to show where his trust truly lies. Boone recently said both players “deserve to be playing there” at shortstop. Yet Volpe remains the Yankees’ preferred option whenever a lineup is drawn. He is viewed by the front office as their future at shortstop. Because of that philosophy, they are ready for him to make all the mistakes at the major league level to reach his high ceiling.

That is why, even after giving Volpe a day off against Cleveland in the first game of the series, Boone has returned him to the lineup for the second game.

The New York Yankees manager has consistently defended Volpe through his struggles.

“I see talent. I see a tough kid that works his butt off,” Boone said. He also pointed to Volpe’s defense, saying the shortstop has made several outstanding plays. Volpe backed up part of that argument by playing 16 straight games without an error after coming back from his surgery.

But while Boone sees progress, the offensive numbers tell a different story. Volpe is batting .197 with a .605 OPS with one homer in 19 games since coming back. After briefly hitting .280 in the first 5 games, he went 3-for-22 during a stretch, and that struggle has continued.

The frustration reached another level during the Red Sox series. Volpe lined out with the bases loaded in a scoreless game. Later, a wild throw helped Boston tie the game in the sixth inning. Even though the Yankees eventually won 6-1, many fans left the game talking about Volpe and his position on the team.

That is where Caballero enters the conversation. Before suffering a finger injury, Caballero hit .259 with four home runs, 13 RBIs, and 13 stolen bases. His defense may not have been elite, but he provided enough stability at shortstop to help the Yankees. More importantly, his offense gave the team another source of production.

The debate only gets worse because with Aaron Judge injured, the team will need every bat to impact the game. And that is why fans want to see Caballero on the team sheet over Volpe. But Boone continues to believe that Volpe’s long-term value outweighs his current struggles.

And after this decision, the fans have gone wild.

Yankees fans go mad after Aaron Boone backs Anthony Volpe over Jose Caballero

The New York Yankees are under fire again, and it’s the same story about Aaron Boone, Anthony Volpe, and how he gets chances over everyone else. But this time, the fans are really unhappy.

“FIRE BOONE IMMEDIATELY!!!” and “Fire him” are now being said to Aaron Boone after the lineup choice.

But this isn’t something new. We have seen this before. In 2025, when Stanton got injured, and so did Judge, Boone made no push to promote Jose Caballero. And even with Volpe committing 19 errors at shortstop in 2025, he was given full freedom to play there.

“Volpe’s baseball IQ for SS not good,” and “Why?? Volpe has done nothing but regress? Am I wrong ?” asked the fans who wanted a clear explanation as to why this decision was being made.

This frustration from fans is not just emotion, but backed by numbers. Volpe had one good seven-game stretch earlier this year, recording nine hits and seven RBIs. But it has been downhill since. Since then, he has played eight games and has just three hits with one RBI, and that is not enough production without Judge. And even that error against Boston didn’t prove to be costly because the offense was producing runs, and Judge was there.

But now, production is a question that is going to be tough to cover, especially with Volpe.

“I just can’t stand Boone. Everyone is unlucky. Say what it is, yo. This is getting old. It’s clear Volpe is getting more plays at SS. Cabby plays better when he is our everyday SS,” wrote a fan who is frustrated with the excuses Boone keeps giving for Volpe.

If we compare the last 17 games played by Volpe to the last 17 games played by Caballero, there is no match. Caballero has an average of .250 with a homer and 3 RBIs, and then he hit the IL. But if we consider the full season, Caballero has an average of .253 with 5 homers and 16 RBIs with an OPS of almost .700.

While Volpe is still batting with an average of just below .200, that can’t be enough to choose Volpe over Caballero.

And the fans are seeing the same pattern and are not happy with Aaron Boone for how the team is being handled.