Yankees' Anthony Volpe seems to have hit his stride at plate
Anthony Volpe of the Yankees reacts after hitting an RBI double against the Miami Marlins in the ninth inning of the game at loanDepot park on Friday in Miami, Fla. Credit: Getty Images/Megan Briggs
MIAMI — Anthony Volpe, with some rare exceptions of standout play, has had a mostly miserable 2025.
But there are signs the third-year shortstop is starting to turn things around, especially at the plate.
Lost a bit in Friday night’s train wreck of a loss — the Yankees fell to the Marlins, 13-12, after holding leads of 6-0, 9-4 and 12-10 — was a 4-for-5 performance by Volpe that included a tying home run in the eighth inning after the Yankees had fallen behind 10-9.
Volpe went 0-for-3 Saturday in the Yankees' 2-0 loss to Miami and dropped to a .221 batting average and .289 on-base percentage, but he entered the day hitting .333 (11-for-33) with a .371 on-base percentage in the previous nine games. Volpe, who ranks fifth on the club with 17 homers, entered the day having homered in five of those nine games and in seven of his last 13.
“I think I’m just simple and aggressive,” he said. “It’s been awesome, so I’m going to stick with it.”
What does he mean by simple?
“Just looking for my pitch and I’m convicted and confident that I’m going to get it,” he said. “That’s what I’m preparing for. I’m not really thinking about all the other stuff [like] what they may do. I’m looking for that one to hit. It’s been good. I just feel comfortable. I feel like myself.”
Aaron Boone, among Volpe’s staunchest defenders, has said for several weeks that he felt he was close to breaking out at the plate.
“It's good to see. We need it,” Boone said before Saturday’s game. “We need him to be a big part of this team, on both sides of the ball. It’s good to him, really over these last 10 days, two weeks, to really start to get some offensive results, impacting the ball, having good at-bats. Especially down at the bottom of the order, him and [Ryan] McMahon doing some things more toward the bottom has really lengthened our lineup and has me excited about our offense and what it can be. Now we’ve got to get the whole game to sync up.”
Judge about ready
Aaron Judge, placed on the injured list last Sunday with a flexor strain in his right elbow, took batting practice on the field at loanDepot park for a second straight day Saturday and departed later in the afternoon for Tampa. Judge will take live at-bats against Yankees minor-leaguers Sunday and Monday and, if there are no issues, is likely to be activated on Tuesday.
Gil set to debut
Reigning American League Rookie of the Year Luis Gil, who started the season on the IL with a right lat strain, will make his 2025 debut Sunday afternoon.
“It feels like the rehab process for him has been smooth. There hasn’t been any setbacks or hiccups,” Boone said. “I feel like every step of the way he’s felt really good about it. We’ve had a good, solid buildup to where he’s almost to a full clip [pitch count] going into tomorrow. I think very ready for it and very excited to go out there and join our guys and hopefully be a part in helping us make a really strong push these final couple months.”
Extra bases
Righthander Mark Leiter Jr., on the IL since July 8 with a left fibular head stress fracture, was slated to begin a rehab assignment Saturday night with Double-A Somerset. If he recovers well from that, there’s a chance he will be activated at some point during the three-game series in Arlington that starts Monday night . . . Friday’s loss marked the Yankees’ first loss on the road when scoring at least 12 runs since July 24, 1940, against the St. Louis Browns at Sportsman’s Park, according to MLB.com. It was the first time they lost a nine-inning game when scoring at least 12 runs since Aug. 12, 1973, against the A’s at Yankee Stadium.
Erik Boland started in Newsday's sports department in 2002. He covered high school and college sports, then shifted to the Jets beat. He has covered the Yankees since 2009.
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