The New York Yankees bid farewell to the postseason in a 2025 MLB season filled with immense pressure on both Aaron Boone and the Yankees front office, as expectations were sky-high after reaching the World Series the previous year. Ultimately, the goal wasn’t achieved, but this offseason will serve to analyze specific situations that put the team in checkmate.
One of them was the performance of Anthony Volpe, a Yankees shortstop who went from showcasing elite potential to committing numerous errors and delivering underwhelming offensive output. It was eventually revealed that he’ll undergo surgery on his non-dominant shoulder, but the decisions made leave many doubts.
Anthony Volpe was never the same
It was evident that whenever Volpe received cortisone injections, his performance improved, but throughout the year, the New York Yankees organization tried every way possible to convince everyone that his shoulder injury wasn’t the reason for his worst season both at the plate and in the field.
In September, general manager Brian Cashman stated that his shortstop wouldn’t need surgery and would undergo new tests once the season ended. “They’ll just repeat imaging at the end of the year and see where he’s at,” Cashman said on September 12th, “but as of right now, there’s no surgery recommended. There’s not even an IL recommendation.”
The situation became even more confusing as Volpe continued struggling with errors and low offensive production, yet the Yankees acquired José Caballero from the Tampa Bay Rays-a player they didn’t use in the Divisional Series, and we’ll never know if he would have outperformed Volpe.
In 15 plate appearances, Volpe struck out 11 times against Blue Jays pitching and managed just one hit in four games. Volpe’s poor performance was so stark that in the ninth inning of Game 4, manager Aaron Boone replaced him with Jasson Domínguez, who hit a double and was driven in by Aaron Judge.
Many believe Caballero should have started over Volpe. The former Ray had just one plate appearance in the series, and the only game he started in October was against the Boston Red Sox; after that, he was relegated to the bench.
Caballero shone after being acquired. In 95 plate appearances, he posted a .266/.372/.456 slash line, with six doubles, three home runs, nine RBIs, and 15 stolen bases.
His defensive play was also standout. While Volpe was a negative at the position, Caballero’s glove excelled. The versatile infielder, capable of covering any spot on the field, recorded five outs above average per Baseball Savant, while Volpe finished at -6 after posting +13 in 2024.
Allowing Volpe to start in the postseason now adds to the list of factors that led the New York Yankees to another disappointing end to the season.
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