Yankees' Anthony Volpe not surprised by Hal Steinbrenner and Brian Cashman's aggressive defense of organization

The impassioned defenses of the Yankees offered by Hal Steinbrenner and Brian Cashman reinforced the internal belief that those in positions of responsibility share the same championship goals for the franchise as the players and coaching staff.

That, in essence, is how Anthony Volpe viewed the emotional statements made earlier this week by the owner and general manager.

“Just from my experience this year, everyone’s pulling in the same direction,” Volpe said prior to a meet-and-greet at the MLB Store in Midtown Manhattan Thursday afternoon. “Everyone wants the same thing. At the end of the day, we want to be able to win the World Series so I think it obviously helps that everyone’s pulling the same string.”

During a Zoom interview with reporters Tuesday, Steinbrenner called the Yankees’ 2023 season “unacceptable,” but would not publicly commit to wholesale changes in the baseball operations and analytics departments. The owner also defended the analytics team from pointed public critiques, saying the criticism is “not justified in my opinion.”

Shortly thereafter, in a scrum with reporters at the general managers’ meetings in Scottsdale, Ariz., Cashman went on the offensive.

“We’ve got good people,” Cashman said. “ I’m proud of our people and I’m proud of our process. [That] doesn’t mean we’re firing on all cylinders. [That] doesn’t mean we’re best in class but I think we’re pretty [expletive] good, personally, and I’m proud of our people. …I’m proud of our operation. I think we have a great group of baseball people.”

And perhaps the owner and executive are correct. But it is equally fair to point out that the Yankees spent $293 million on a team that finished 82-80 and missed the postseason for the first time since 2016.

So, no, it wasn’t an especially overwhelming season.

But Volpe’s play–specifically in the field–was a cause for optimism. The shortstop became the first rookie in franchise history to win a Gold Glove. Volpe also joined Derek Jeter as the only shortstops in franchise history to win the award. 

So, the question was asked, how does it feel to be in an exclusive club with Jeter, who won five in his Hall of Fame career?

“It sounds crazy,” Volpe said. “You really dream about being in the same type of sentences like that but I feel like [I have] a long way to go to reach him.”

One of the areas that Volpe has singled out for improvement is hitting. After compiling a .309/.415/.618 slash line with three home runs and five RBIs in 19 spring training games, Volpe only hit .209 in 159 regular season games, although he did finish with 21 home runs and 60 RBIs.

The subpar offensive output is something akin to a bone of contention for the 22-year-old. 

“My expectation for myself...is super-high,” Volpe said. “I definitely know that last year didn’t even come close to cutting it and that’s just on me. I feel like I know where I have to be and all the work I’m doing leading up to that is going to be towards that goal.”

 To that end, Volpe is spending the off-season working on his hitting. 

“I just want to be a better hitter,” Volpe said. “...I don’t feel like I did my part, really, as much as I should have. So I feel like the work I’m putting in now and going into spring training [will] just put me in a way better position to succeed.” 

Texas Rangers catcher Jonah Heim, Hall of Famer Ozzie Smith and SNY baseball analyst Keith Hernandez also appeared at the afternoon-long event.