TAMPA — The Yankees are not wasting any time getting a look at their top prospect this spring.
Shortstop Anthony Volpe will be among the minor leaguers joining the Yankees for their Grapefruit League opener on Friday in Bradenton, Fla., against the Pirates. Manager Aaron Boone will be bringing his new starting shortstop, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, along with Gleyber Torres, Luke Voit and Joey Gallo, among others. But Volpe will get a chance to relieve Kiner-Falefa after a few innings and begin to show off the potential the Yankees have been raving about.
“He’s definitely someone I’m looking forward to getting over here and gaining some experience with these guys and being around these guys a little bit,” Boone said Thursday. “Obviously we’re excited about his future.”
Boone said the Yankees considered bringing Volpe to major league camp this spring as a non-roster invitee — he is not yet on the 40-man roster — but the lockout threw off those plans. Because minor league camp began ahead of major league camp, the Yankees thought inviting him to big league camp would slow him down.
Still, Boone said the 20-year-old Volpe would be with the Yankees “a good bit” for their Grapefruit League schedule so they can get an up-close look at their 2019 first-round pick. Catcher Austin Wells, the Yankees’ No. 6 prospect according MLB.com, is also on the travel roster for Friday’s game.
Volpe’s breakout season last year between Low-A Tampa and High-A Hudson Valley shot him up the prospect rankings and put him squarely on the Yankees’ radar, even though he is not expected to arrive in the big leagues until at least 2023. The presence of Volpe and fellow shortstop prospect Oswald Peraza played a part in the club not going after one of the top free-agent shortstops on the market this offseason, managing general partner Hal Steinbrenner said Wednesday.
While Volpe’s “presence and makeup” have stood out to Boone, the manager will begin to get a better look at the New Jersey product’s game on Friday.
“You can tell he loves the game and is invested in it,” Boone said. “He reminds me of [Aaron Judge] a little bit in that way, in that he’s dedicated to the finer things, the smaller things.
“Coupled with that, we’ve seen a high school 18-year-old [when he was drafted] just continue to physically develop. Missed time in the COVID year, but what we saw there was him really investing in getting better and stronger. Obviously he put together a really special season last year. We’re pretty excited about him.”
