Roger Rubin: Yankees' Anthony Volpe, Jose Caballero provide winning combo
Yankees' Jazz Chisholm Jr. slides into home plate to score the go-ahead run after a single by Anthony Volpe during the ninth inning against the Royals on Monday in Kansas City, Mo. Credit: AP/Charlie Riedel
KANSAS CITY — When Anthony Volpe was fully healed from offseason shoulder surgery at the start of the month, the Yankees opted to stick with Jose Caballero as the starting shortstop because of his strong play in Volpe’s absence.
When Caballero went on the injured list with a broken finger two weeks ago, Volpe returned to the lineup and took over as the starting shortstop. But when Caballero returned last Friday, he was reinstalled at the position.
On Monday, the Yankees changed this Caballero-Volpe paradigm. They showed this doesn’t have to be an “either/or” situation — in which one plays and one sits — by starting both for the first time this season.
Caballero — always valued because he is athletic enough to play three infield positions and all three outfield spots — played third base and Volpe played shortstop.
And isn’t it nice when a plan works beautifully? That was the case against the Royals in the teams’ Memorial Day matinee.
Volpe played errorless shortstop and delivered a two-run single to left-centerfield on a 1-and-2 slider from Kansas City closer Lucas Erceg in the ninth inning to erase a one-run deficit and send the Yankees to a 4-3 victory before 26,162 at Kauffman Stadium.
Caballero capped a two-run second that began with Cody Bellinger’s seventh home run with an RBI single and ended the game with a scintillating defensive play on Maikel Garcia’s smash.
“I just felt great to . . . contribute and help the team,” Volpe said. “That’s all I’ve ever wanted to do. That was all I ever wanted to do while I was working and grinding to come back.”
The matchup against the Royals’ Michael Wacha presented an excellent opportunity to use Volpe and Caballero in the same lineup. The righthander is tough on lefthanded hitters such as third baseman Ryan McMahon, so having the righthanded-hitting Volpe and Caballero in the lineup made sense.
“I also trust both of those guys and who they are and their makeup and their toughness,” manager Aaron Boone said. “It doesn’t have to be one way or the other in [every] game, and they were both in the middle of helping us win.”
The concept of playing both has been in the ether since Caballero came off the IL, even though he started at shortstop in both games in the weekend series against the Rays. Boone had told him that on this road trip to face the Royals and Athletics, he’d need to bring all of his different gloves — four total — on the road.
Asked how many gloves he took on the road before this trip, Caballero replied, “Just the one.”
Volpe has been solid since his return. His batting average is only .231, but in nine games, he has drawn eight walks, has an on-base percentage of .412 and has driven in five runs.
With Volpe contributing, the Yankees have plans to keep both in the lineup in more ways than this one. Before Monday’s game, Boone suggested that Caballero might get a start in the outfield on this trip, possibly even in this series.
When Caballero was put on the IL and Volpe was recalled from the minors, it was inevitable that there would be competition for starts at shortstop. And regardless of whether anyone on the Yankees would say it explicitly, competition means pressure to perform and stay in the lineup.
The Yankees’ decision to tap into Caballero’s versatility has to remove the pressure that starting time is going to be on the line in every game. And, certainly, both Caballero and Volpe looked comfortable.
Volpe kept putting together productive at-bats, seeing a total of 27 pitches in his four turns at the plate. He drew a seven-pitch walk in the second and scored on Caballero’s single to make it 2-0. And in the ninth, Boone said, “No panic there with two strikes — [he] doesn’t chase a [0-and-2] pitch to get another opportunity . . . to drive it.”
Caballero called playing third base for the first time this season “like riding a bike” and made that final play look much easier than it was.
After seeing both Volpe and Caballero play huge roles in this win, Boone was asked about seeing the new paradigm at work. His reply was something more big picture with an eye toward the returns of Giancarlo Stanton and Jasson Dominguez from injuries.
“It’s part of the reason I tell you I like this team so much — I feel like our depth and everything’s just in a better place,” he said. “Especially as you start to get guys back in the mix, there’s a lot of different things you can do on the diamond to win a game.”
Roger Rubin returned to Newsday in 2018 to write about high schools, colleges and baseball following 20 years at the Daily News. A Baseball Hall of Fame voter since 2011, he has covered 13 MLB postseasons and 14 NCAA Final Fours.
