The Yankees fielded an infielder José Caballero on the ten day list of finger injuries. Shortstop Anthony Volpe it will be remembered as a parallel move. Franchys Romero of BeisbolFR first reported on Volpe’s recall. ESPN’s Jorge Castillo confirmed that Caballero will be in the IL.
However Max Schuemann first stop today, Volpe will likely take over as the club’s regular in that position with Caballero on the shelf. That was the way things were supposed to play out earlier this year. Volpe was the Yankee shortstop from 2023 to 2025. Volpe needed shoulder surgery in October of last year and was set to start the 2026 season at IL. The Yankees have planned for Caballero, a former utility player, to hold the position until Volpe is healthy.
But the plans seemed to change as Caballero played well and Volpe didn’t leave immediately after returning to the field. Caballero produced a .259/.320/.400 line this year, good enough for a 105 wRC+. He also posted strong defensive grades and stole 13 bases.
The Yanks decided to ride the hot hand and stick with Caballero. Volpe had begun the renovation work in mid-April. Rehab assignments for position players come with a maximum of 20 days. When Volpe’s 20 days ended more than a week ago, the Yanks optioned him to Triple-A to get more reps. Caballero injured his finger when he slid into the base this week. It is not clear how much time he is expected to miss but it will lead to Volpe returning to the top.
Perhaps it will be an opportunity for Volpe to re-establish himself as the team’s shortstop, something that has been clouded recently. He made the club’s Opening Day roster in 2023 just before his 22nd birthday. He scored 21 runs, stole 24 bases and had a good defensive grade. Despite the home run, his overall offense was low. He slashed .209/.283/.383 with a wRC+ of 83. But that held a .259 batting average on balls in play. Given his youth and his good fortune, it was only fair to expect growth.
That didn’t work out, unfortunately. Volpe hit .229/.283/.377 over 2024 and 2025, which translates to a wRC+ of 85. In 18 minor league games this year, he has a .221/.276/.294 line and a 52 wRC+. After shoulder surgery, a little bit of rust is perhaps not surprising but continues to be a trend of lower case.
The Yankees are 26-16 while most clubs in the American League are under .500, so they should be fine even if Volpe struggles over the next few weeks. However, there may be long-term effects. George Lombard Jr. he’s one of the club’s top prospects and has reached Triple-A, so he may be looking to get promoted to the big leagues at some point. There is also the fact that he is a second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. is an upcoming free agent.
With things up in the air when it comes to center field, the Yankees will eventually have to make some decisions about the way forward. Volpe has a lot of options and could be sent down in the future but the Yankees would like it again if he does well enough to not move.
With Volpe’s power at the helm, quick recall may be important. He entered this year with exactly three years of major league service. He continued to record service dates while at IL but that clock stopped when he was drafted. Now it will start commenting again.
A major league season is 187 days long but a player needs 172 days of service to be credited for a full year. Since Volpe was only elected on May 3, nine days ago, he could still reach the four-year mark if he stays a year. Although if he is re-elected and ends up falling short of that four-year term, his path to freedom will be delayed by a year.
Photo courtesy of Vincent Carchietta, Imagn Images
