Yankees' Volpe makes MLB history in Game 1 vs. Red Sox

New York Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe (11) hits a solo home run during the second inning against the Boston Red Sox during game one of the wild-card round for the 2025 MLB playoffs at Yankee Stadium. Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Yankees' Anthony Volpe makes MLB history in Game 1 vs. Red Sox

By Steve DelVecchio | Last updated Sep 30, 2025 7:52 PM ET

Anthony Volpe needed only one at-bat in the 2025 postseason to remind New York Yankees fans of why he is still in the lineup, and the shortstop made some MLB history in the process.

Volpe got the Yankees on the board early in their American League wild-card game against the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday night. He hit a solo home run to right field off Garrett Crochet to give New York a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning.

Though he hit just .212 during the regular season, Volpe delivered for the Yankees in the playoffs a year ago. He hit .286 with an .815 OPS across 14 postseason games and helped New York reach the World Series.

As ESPN's Jorge Castillo noted, Volpe's homer on Tuesday night was his 15th hit in 15 career playoff games. Volpe is the first shortstop in MLB history to have 15 hits and 10 walks in his first 15 postseason games.

Two notes on that Anthony Volpe home run:

--It would've been a home run in every ballpark except Fenway.

--He is the first shortstop in MLB history with 15 hits and 10 walks in his first 15 career postseason games, according to ESPN Research.
— Jorge Castillo (@jorgecastillo) September 30, 2025

Volpe is looking to prove he belongs

Volpe was benched at one point during the second half of the season in a move that Yankees manager Aaron Boone hoped would help give the 24-year-old a reset at the plate. It did not seem to help much, as Volpe batted .220 in the month of September. He did, however, start to heat up a bit over the final two weeks of the season.

Even as Volpe battles a lingering injury, Boone has stuck with him as the team's everyday shortstop. There have been plenty of calls for Volpe to be replaced by Jose Caballero, but Volpe is a Gold Glove winner and one of the best defensive shortstops in baseball. He also has a history of delivering big hits in the postseason.

At least for one night, Boone's continued confidence in Volpe was rewarded in short order.

Steve DelVecchio

Steve is a veteran writer who has covered a variety of sports and pop culture topics for more than 15 years. In addition to Yardbarker, his work has been featured on prominent digital publications including Larry Brown Sports, MSN and FOX Sports. The UConn graduate has published more than 40,000 stories and is one of the most experienced trending news writers in the country

More must-reads: