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Anthony Volpe

Anthony Volpe
Volpe with the Somerset Patriots in 2022
New York Yankees – No. 11
Shortstop
Born: (2001-04-28) April 28, 2001 (age 23)
New York City, New York, U.S.
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
MLB debut
March 30, 2023, for the New York Yankees
MLB statistics
(through 2024 season)
Batting average.228
Home runs33
Runs batted in120
Stolen bases52
Teams
Career highlights and awards
Medals
Men's baseball
Representing the  United States
U-12 Baseball World Cup
Gold medal – first place 2013 Taipei Team
U-15 Baseball World Cup
Bronze medal – third place 2016 Iwaki Team
COPABE U-18 Pan-American Championship
Gold medal – first place 2018 Panama Team

Anthony Michael Volpe (born April 28, 2001) is an American professional baseball shortstop for the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball (MLB). The Yankees selected Volpe in the first round of the 2019 MLB draft. He made his MLB debut in 2023, winning the American League Gold Glove Award at shortstop in his rookie year.

Early life and amateur career

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Volpe was born on April 28, 2001, at Mount Sinai Hospital in Manhattan, New York.[1] Both of Volpe's parents are doctors. His father, Michael, is a urologist and his mother, Isabelle, is an anesthesiologist.[2] Michael is of Italian descent and Isabelle is Filipino. His paternal grandparents were born in Naples, Italy, and his mother was born and raised in the Philippines.[3][4]

Anthony Volpe lived on the Upper East Side of Manhattan as a child. His family had partial season tickets to see the New York Yankees and he became a Yankees fan. He attended the Yankees' 2009 World Series championship parade.[5] Volpe and his family moved to Watchung, New Jersey, when he was in the fourth grade.[6]

Volpe attended Delbarton School in Morristown, New Jersey, where he played for the school's baseball team and was a teammate of Jack Leiter, who is a MLB pitcher.[7][8][9] As a senior, he batted .488 with seven home runs, 34 runs batted in (RBIs), and 17 stolen bases.[10] He was named the 2019 New Jersey High School Player of the Year by Perfect Game.[11] Volpe committed to play college baseball at Vanderbilt University.[12]

Professional career

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Minor leagues

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The Yankees selected Volpe in the first round, with the 30th overall selection of the 2019 MLB draft.[13] He signed on June 10, receiving a $2.7 million signing bonus, and made his professional debut with the Pulaski Yankees of the Rookie Advanced Appalachian League.[14][15][16] Over 34 games, he batted .215 with two home runs and 11 RBIs.[17] During the COVID-19 shutdown, which resulted in the cancellation of the 2020 minor league season, Volpe worked to gain muscle and improve his swing.[18]

Beginning the 2021 season, Volpe was assigned to the Tampa Tarpons of the Low-A Southeast.[19] After slashing .302/.455/.623 with 12 home runs and 49 RBIs in 54 games played, he was promoted to the Hudson Valley Renegades of High-A East.[20] He spent a full season with the club, hitting 27 home runs and stealing 33 bases. Volpe is the minor leagues' first 20-homer, 50-steal player since Andruw Jones in 1996.[21][22]

The Yankees assigned Volpe to the Somerset Patriots of the Double-A Eastern League for the start of the 2022 season.[23] On June 26, he hit a walk-off home run in the bottom of the 10th inning against the visiting Hartford Yard Goats. His solo homer delivered the Eastern League Northeast Division first-half title to the Somerset Patriots in a winner-take-all game between the division's top two teams.[24] In July, he represented the American League at the All-Star Futures Game.[25] Volpe batted .252 with 18 home runs and 60 RBIs in 109 games for Somerset and was promoted to the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders of the Triple-A International League on September 2.[26]

Major leagues

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2023

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In 2023, the Yankees invited Volpe to spring training as a non-roster player, where he competed with Oswald Peraza for the starting shortstop role.[27] On March 26, 2023, the Yankees announced that Volpe had earned a spot on the team's Opening Day roster as the starting shortstop.[28][29] He recorded his first major league hit in the second game of the season on April 1.[30] On April 14, he hit his first major league home run.[31] On May 10, 2023, he hit his first career grand slam. He became the Yankees' first rookie shortstop to hit a grand slam.[32] On May 13, he set a record as the first player in Yankees history to steal his first 13 career bases without being caught.[33] On May 23, Volpe had his first walk-off plate appearance when he hit a sac fly to drive in the winning run against the Baltimore Orioles.[34]

Volpe became the 15th MLB rookie to record both 20 home runs and 20 stolen bases in the same season.[35] However, his .283 on-base percentage was the worst among qualified MLB players and his strikeout rate was 13th worst in the league.[36] He finished his rookie season with a .209 batting average, .666 OPS, 21 home runs, 60 RBIs, 24 stolen bases, and 23 doubles.[37] He received a single vote in American League Rookie of the Year voting, finishing in eighth place.[38] He won the AL Gold Glove Award at shortstop, becoming the first Yankee rookie to win the award.[39][40]

2024

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Volpe worked to improve his offense in the offseason, leveling his swing to improve his bat control in the upper part of the zone.[36] He quickly improved his offensive profile to start the 2024 season, cutting his strikeout rate in half while increasing his walk rate and on-base percentage through the first two months of play.[36] On April 1, 2024, he recorded his first four-hit game.[41] In May, he recorded a 21-game hitting streak, the longest by a Yankees player in over a decade.[42] The streak cemented his role as the team's regular lead-off hitter through the first half of the season.[36] He was moved down in the lineup in July following a long offensive slump.[43] He finished the regular season with a .243 batting average, .657 OPS, 12 home runs, 60 RBI, and 28 stolen bases.[44]

In his first postseason, Volpe recorded a .287 batting average and .815 OPS with five stolen bases.[44] In Game 4 of the 2024 World Series, he hit a grand slam, becoming the first player with four RBIs and two stolen bases in a World Series game.[45]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Miller, Randy (March 31, 2023). "At 2 hours old, Yankees' Anthony Volpe was prepped for his destiny". NJ.com. Retrieved April 3, 2023.
  2. ^ "Who is Anthony Volpe, Yankees' next Derek Jeter". PinstripesNation.com. March 31, 2023. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  3. ^ Chowdhury, Oindrila (March 27, 2023). "Living the dream: A closer look at New York Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe's heritage". www.sportskeeda.com. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  4. ^ Angeles, Steve (March 27, 2023). "Yankees name Fil-Am Anthony Volpe as opening day shortstop". news.abs-cbn.com. Retrieved May 14, 2023.
  5. ^ Hoch, Bryan (October 29, 2024). "Volpe's historic game 'a dream come true' for the lifelong Yankee fan". MLB.com. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
  6. ^ "Volpe FAQ: From Yanks fan to Opening Day shortstop". MLB.com.
  7. ^ Caldera, Pete (June 6, 2019). "Yankees look to team Delbarton's Anthony Volpe, Jack Leiter again in the Bronx, eventually". NorthJersey.com.
  8. ^ Havsy, Jane (June 3, 2019). "Delbarton duo Leiter, Volpe could be selected in first round of MLB Draft". USATodayHSS.com.
  9. ^ "Top New Jersey 2019 MLB Draft Prospects". www.baseballamerica.com. May 28, 2019.
  10. ^ "Get to know Yankees 2019 first-round draft pick Anthony Volpe". SNY.com. June 3, 2019.
  11. ^ "High School Players of the Year". Perfect Game. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  12. ^ "Anthony Volpe Class of 2019 - Player Profile". Perfect Game.
  13. ^ Caldera, Pete (June 4, 2019). "MLB Draft: Anthony Volpe to New York Yankees at No. 30 overall". lohud.com. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
  14. ^ "New York Yankees first-round pick Anthony Volpe signs with team". The Record. June 10, 2019. Retrieved March 18, 2023.
  15. ^ Rowe, John. "New York Yankees' first-round pick Anthony Volpe adjusting to pro baseball". NorthJersey.com.
  16. ^ Leonard, Brooke; Dempsey, Maddi (July 12, 2019). "There can only be one: The Yankees first rounder Anthony Volpe's journey to the plate". WSLS.com.
  17. ^ "Yankees prospect Anthony Volpe, N.J. Native, short on tools and size, but has skills to overcome 'lower-side pick' rep". NJ.com. June 6, 2020.
  18. ^ "How Yankees prospect, N.J. Native Anthony Volpe made 'huge' stride despite COVID shutdown". NJ.com. February 10, 2021.
  19. ^ "Why Yankees promote 2 shortstop prospects, but not raking Anthony Volpe". NJ.com. June 8, 2021.
  20. ^ Martelli, A. J. (August 11, 2021). "Prized Yankees prospect Anthony Volpe thriving with Hudson Valley Renegades". Poughkeepsie Journal. Retrieved March 26, 2023. The trade deadline came and went without any change in locale. Although the Yankees made significant moves, Volpe wasn't traded. He remained a member of the Hudson Valley Renegades, and has continued to be a major contributor since being promoted to the Fishkill-based club on July 13.
  21. ^ "Anthony Volpe debut on opening day". MLB.com. March 28, 2023.
  22. ^ Martelli, A. J. (September 7, 2021). "Renegades' Anthony Volpe involved in bizarre ejection on home run". Poughkeepsie Journal. Retrieved March 26, 2023. Volpe's home run was his 12th as a member of the Renegades and 24th overall this season. The 20-year-old shortstop was promoted from Low-A Tampa on July 13 and has impressed over the summer with Hudson Valley.
  23. ^ "Yankees No. 1 Prospect Anthony Volpe Assigned To Somerset". MiLB.com.
  24. ^ "Volpe's walk-off delivers division to Somerset". MLB.com.
  25. ^ "Futures Game a confidence validator for Volpe". MLB.com.
  26. ^ Holmlund, Ted (September 2, 2022). "Anthony Volpe promoted after Yankees call up Oswald Peraza". NYPost.com. Retrieved September 9, 2022.
  27. ^ Caldera, Pete (February 22, 2023). "Will NJ native Anthony Volpe, the Yankees' top prospect, play in the Bronx soon?". The Record. Retrieved March 18, 2023.
  28. ^ Hoch, Bryan (March 26, 2023). "Yanks' top prospect Volpe makes Opening Day roster". MLB.com. Retrieved March 26, 2023.
  29. ^ Passan, Jeff (March 26, 2023). "Yankees top prospect Anthony Volpe makes Opening Day roster". ESPN.com. Retrieved March 26, 2023.
  30. ^ "Anthony Volpe on his first-career big-league hit: 'Definitely one I won't forget'". NYDailyNews.com. April 17, 2019. Retrieved April 2, 2023.
  31. ^ "Anthony Volpe's first career HR | April 14, 2023". MLB.com. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  32. ^ Hoch, Bryan (May 10, 2023). "Anthony Volpe hits first career grand slam for Yankees". MLB.com. Retrieved December 23, 2024.
  33. ^ Wilson, Alexander (May 14, 2023). "Yankees' Anthony Volpe sets impressive franchise record". empiresportsmedia.com. Retrieved June 13, 2023.
  34. ^ Hoch, Bryan (May 24, 2023). "Anthony Volpe has first career walk-off RBI". MLB.com. Retrieved December 23, 2024.
  35. ^ Najarian, Joe (August 13, 2023). "New York Yankees' Promising Rookie Approaching History". SI.com. Retrieved December 23, 2024.
  36. ^ a b c d Thosar, Deesha (April 17, 2024). "Three reasons why Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe is breaking out". Fox Sports. Retrieved June 9, 2024.
  37. ^ "Major League Leaderboards - 2023 - Batting". FanGraphs Baseball.
  38. ^ "2023 Awards Voting". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved January 30, 2021.
  39. ^ Joyce, Greg (November 5, 2023). "Yankees' Anthony Volpe wins historic Golf Glove to cap rookie season". New York Post. Retrieved November 9, 2023.
  40. ^ Hoch, Bryan (November 5, 2023). "Volpe becomes 1st Yankees rookie to win Gold Glove". MLB.com. MLB Advanced Media. Retrieved November 9, 2023.
  41. ^ Kirschner, Chris (April 2, 2024). "Yankees' Anthony Volpe's at-bats 'look dangerous' in Year 2". The New York Times. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
  42. ^ Hickey, Kevin (May 31, 2024). "New York Yankees' Anthony Volpe snaps hitting streak at 21 games". Sporting News. Retrieved June 9, 2024.
  43. ^ Sanchez, Mark W. "Yankees demote Anthony Volpe from leadoff spot as brutal stretch continues". New York Post. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
  44. ^ a b "Anthony Volpe Stats". MLB.com. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
  45. ^ Hoch, Bryan (October 29, 2024). "Volpe's historic game 'a dream come true' for the lifelong Yankee fan". MLB.com. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
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