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Jazz Chisholm Jr. Sends Anthony Volpe Message After Yankees’ Controversial Decision

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Josh Valdez | Last updated Aug 26, 2025 12:46 PM ET

The New York Yankees' infield production this season has been a tale of two sides. The right side, led by second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr., first baseman Paul Goldschmidt, and first baseman/catcher Ben Rice, has been reliable. The left is a different story.

Shortstop Anthony Volpe is having the worst season of his career, and third base has been a revolving door. Oswaldo Cabrera has yet to return after breaking his ankle on May 12, while Oswald Peraza and DJ LeMahieu were traded and cut, respectively. The Yankees revamped their third base group at the Trade Deadline, acquiring starter Ryan McMahon along with backups Amed Rosario and Jose Caballero.

The latter player is primarily a shortstop and started there in place of Volpe in the last two games, which New York both won. He's slashing .281/.368/.500 with two homers and five RBI in 16 games since coming to the Yankees, along with two errors. Meanwhile, Volpe is slashing .169/.213/.338 with two homers and seven RBI over 21 games in August. The 24-year-old also has an AL-high 17 errors this season.

That's why New York fans were upset that manager Aaron Boone said on Monday that Volpe is still the starting shortstop and will start on Tuesday, via MLB.com's Bryan Hoch. The third-year player is hurting the team with his struggles, but the organization refuses to sit him out for an extended period.

Chisholm gave his thoughts about Volpe's situation via The Athletic's Chris Kirschner.

“It’s hard to be a New York Yankee, especially when you’re struggling a little bit because the fans are kind of rough out here,” he said. “They let you know that they want to win. We got to go out there and do it for them every day. I feel like he’s handling it like a grown man. We have to remember that he’s only 24. He’s gonna learn more stuff over time. He’s already had success, and he’s gonna find his way back to that. I wouldn’t say he’s super struggling. He’s got 18 home runs as a shortstop. That’s sick."

“It’s hard to be a New York athlete, but that’s what makes it better," he continued. "People care here. You’d rather be in a city where people care than be in a city where they don’t. The highs can be higher basically than anywhere else, but the lows really can be rock bottom.”

James Rowson, the Yankees hitting coach, was asked the question at the center of Anthony Volpe’s struggles: After 3 seasons, why can’t he have any sort of consistency at the plate?

“It’s a hard question to answer, to be honest with you."https://t.co/QySWTikHFb
— Chris Kirschner (@ChrisKirschner) August 26, 2025

Anthony Volpe's Power, Speed Are Saving Graces

Volpe is slashing just .208/.274/.400 this season, but his 18 homers rank sixth in baseball amongst shortstops, while his 65 RBI are tied for fifth. The 2019 first-round pick is also third on the Yankees in RBI, doubles (26), and stolen bases (15).

On the other hand, Volpe is also second on the team with 122 strikeouts, behind only superstar Aaron Judge at 138. However, the latter player leads baseball with a .323 batting average and 1.106 OPS, is tied for fourth with 40 homers, and is eighth with 93 RBI.

Volpe's power and baserunning give him a foundation to build from at the big-league level, but he must improve his contact hitting and fielding to be a viable starter.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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