Aaron Boone tastefully dodges Anthony Volpe question to frustrate Yankees fans

Fans have been hoping that the New York Yankees would come to their senses regarding their golden boy, Anthony Volpe. The former top prospect was handed the shortstop reins with little competition, seemingly rushed into the role as the club declined to pursue free-agent stars like Corey Seager.

Things started out rocky, and over the past three seasons, there has been no improvement. How much longer could the leash be for the 24-year-old?

Aaron Boone was asked that exact question during an appearance on WFAN. What came next was a master class in evasion.

Aaron Boone speaks on Anthony Volpe's job security with Yankees

While Volpe is on the mend following offseason shoulder surgery, shortstop will be the Jose Caballero show. The former Tampa Bay Ray impressed in his limited action in pinstripes following the trade deadline deal that sent him to New York, slashing .266/.372/.456, briefly stealing away playing time from Volpe amid his summer struggles.

We know that Caballero will only be keeping the seat warm for a month or so until Volpe returns to action, but the hope is that he can play well enough over that time that the club could have a quick hook should Volpe continue to struggle upon his return.

"So here's the deal, I mean now, with Caballero in the mix, we have somebody that's like man, this guy's a really good big league player, right, and I think showed that with us, he's shown that the last couple of years with Tampa and Seattle. [He] can really legit defend at a lot of different places, including shortstop. So he's started to push himself into the mix a little bit last year," Boone said, setting the scene for why Caballero might not be a true threat to take over shortstop as he cites his positional versatility.

"I still think Anthony's gonna be a frontline shortstop in this league. Like, everyone's path isn't linear. We always want it to be here, and that can be tough, especially in New York when you're kinda finding your way. So, I think he's gonna turn into that player, and I want it to be here. But, you know, bringing in guys like Caballero that, you know, I think that's good for competition," Boone continued, brimming with confidence.

And while he conceded a bit that Caballero provides some level of competition, the point about progress being linear misses the mark when there have been nearly zero bright spots in Volpe's game since his rookie season. This isn't a situation where he's improved in one area while not fully taking off, and in some cases, like his defensive performance in 2025 — which saw him fall from 14 outs above average in 2024 to -7 OAA last season — he's truly regressed.

Let's also not pretend like Caballero is some sort of top-tier competition. As Boone pointed out, much of his value comes from his defensive versatility, which means little if he's locked into the everyday shortstop role. His speed is nice, but ultimately he owns a .657 career OPS, which isn't all that different from Volpe's career .662 mark.

Still, Boone proclaiming that Volpe can be one of the game's best shortstops when we've seen no evidence of that over the past three seasons is clearly not an honest assessment. Of course, the manager is going to be diplomatic, but this was over the top.

He did acknowledge that there is a time limit for Volpe to become that player, but did not elaborate further on when the expiration date is for this swelling confidence.

With all of that said, the cracks in the organization's confidence are beginning to show. Boone invoking Caballero as an alternative is a start. Earlier this winter, Volpe's staunchest defender, Brian Cashman, wavered by offering up a lot of words that didn't make a ton of sense when asked similar questions about Volpe's future.

Still, it's clear to see that the Yankees haven't yet reached the point of frustration with the Golden Boy that fans arrived at long ago, and without any real serious alternative it's hard to see a world where they truly decide this isn't working anymore. Maybe Caballero can make the most of his opportunity and push the envelope, but that's a stretch. The best-case scenario if his struggles continue is that they make a move at the trade deadline. Anything else is wishful thinking.