Yankees' Anthony Volpe delivering at the plate and in the field in his first playoff series
New York Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe makes a catch on Kansas City Royals first base Vinnie Pasquantino in the 8th inng during ALDS Game 3 at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City on Oct. 10, 2024 Credit: Newsday/William Perlman
KANSAS CITY, Mo.
As Anthony Volpe spoke on Wednesday night after the Yankees’ 3-2 victory over the Royals in Game 3 of the ALDS at Kauffman Stadium, George Benson’s 1980 song “Give Me the Night” played in the visiting clubhouse.
“Cause there’s music in the air and lots of lovin’ in the air, so give me the night.”
That’s from the song. It’s not anything Volpe said.
But the lyrics fit the vibe in the room perfectly. Volpe had the defensive play of the night — of the series to date, actually — and the Yankees had the opportunity to move on to the ALCS if they could win with Gerrit Cole on the mound on Thursday night.
Volpe also has been more than solid at the plate. He went into Game 4 just 2-for-8, but with four walks and only one strikeout. The seven times Volpe has hit the ball fair, he has averaged 101.5 mph, with three lineouts to right and a 105.1-mph groundout to short among his unlucky outcomes.
Maybe the five days off before the Division Series helped Volpe. Everyone was thinking about how the rest might affect Yankees pitchers. But their 23-year-old shortstop — who was oddly overworked by manager Aaron Boone during the regular season — seems more fresh in his first postseason.
“I definitely feel good,” Volpe said. “I feel like I’m controlling the zone. Just in a good position to do damage when I get mistakes.”
Volpe played in 160 games in the regular season, starting 158 of them, even though the Yankees had a more than capable backup in Oswaldo Cabrera.
Volpe went through long stretches of offensive futility, but Boone rarely gave him a day to rest because the Yankees value the 2023 AL Gold Glove winner’s defense so highly.
There were times when Volpe’s at-bats were so underwhelming (2-for-25 during one late-season stretch) that it seemed a day off might have been to his benefit. Volpe plays one of the most demanding positions on the diamond; the Yankees have to think about instituting some sort of load management program for him in 2025.
Before the Yankees clinched the AL East title, Boone sat Volpe in two September games and had Cabrera pinch hit for him in another.
That seemed to be mostly about performance. Volpe was trending in the wrong direction as the postseason loomed. He has turned it around in the ALDS with quality at-bat after quality at-bat and a lot of hard contact.
Francisco Lindor of the Mets, the senior shortstop in town, is known as Mr. Smile, and he has a lot to smile about these days.
Volpe could be called “Mr. Smile Jr.,” because he always has a grin on his face and is always upbeat. After making a throwing error that led to two unearned runs in Game 1 — his first playoff game, remember — Volpe has been rock-solid since.
“I mean, those things happen from time to time, the error,” Boone said. “Everyone says he rushed. I’m like, ‘Have you ever seen him play? That’s how he plays.’ That’s what makes him so unique and special, is he plays so fast and always under control. Misfired on a throw a little bit. It happens. But I was really encouraged by the at-bats.”
Then came the play in the eighth inning of Game 3. The Yankees were clinging to a one-run lead with one out and a man on first when Vinnie Pasquantino sent a floater over second base against Luke Weaver.
Volpe, who was shaded almost behind second against the lefty hitter, raced to his left on the outfield grass and caught the ball with a dive way over on the second-base side.
“I think Volpe is one of the more athletic guys I’ve seen,” Weaver said. “I think he walks around with some — it’s like Reebok pump shoes. He just kind of presets it, gets ready to go. That ball . . . that would have been trouble right there, for sure.”
Salvador Perez followed with a single, but Weaver got Yuli Gurriel to fly out to center to end the inning and went on to record the five-out save that put the Yankees a win away from the ALCS.
Volpe, as is his nature, gave an “aw, shucks” vibe when asked about the play. And about his first postseason action, all Volpe said was, “A lot of fun. A lot of fun.”
Sure is — when you win.
Anthony Rieber covers baseball, as well as the NFL, NBA and NHL. He has worked at Newsday since Aug. 31, 1998, and has been in his current position since July 5, 2004.