Aaron Boone shares where Anthony Volpe stands with Yankees

Anthony Volpe was out of the lineup for the second straight day when the New York Yankees hosted the Washington Nationals on Monday night, but Aaron Boone insists he has not lost confidence in the shortstop.

Volpe was benched for Sunday's series finale against the Boston Red Sox, which the Yankees won 7-2 to prevent a four-game sweep. Jose Caballero started at shortstop for New York and was back in the lineup on Monday.

That raised the question of whether Volpe is now a bench player. Boone was asked about that before the game, and he said he still views Volpe as the Yankees' top shortstop. Boone is just hoping to give Volpe a reset that could serve the 24-year-old well down the stretch.

"I view (Caballero) getting a lot of run in a lot of different spots, but I view Anthony as our shortstop," Boone said. "Production comes in a lot of different ways. I think sometimes people want him, because he's a shortstop with speed, he's gotta hit for a certain average and do certain things.

"Productive offensive players come in many shapes and forms. He's got a lot of ability. He's shown a lot of flashes in that. I think the next thing for Anthony is the consistency part and limiting some of the peaks and valleys."

The problem for Volpe is that he has struggled both at the plate and in the field. He entered Monday batting just .208 and has committed 17 errors, which is the second-most of any player in baseball.

Boone can say he still believes in Volpe, but the lineup card will tell the real story. The manager gave a somewhat ominous answer when asked about Volpe's status on Sunday. If the Yankees get more production from Caballero, Boone is not going to give Volpe his job back just to protect the infielder's feelings.