Anthony Volpe has earned one last chance with Yankees in September amid heater

Anthony Volpe is not going to steal the shortstop job back from George Lombard Jr. (despite Lombard's recent defensive issues). Volpe's tenure as the New York Yankees' starting shortstop effectively ended when the Yankees optioned him on Aug. 4 and launched the Lombard era with no intention of turning back.

What Volpe can do, however, is give New York another competent infielder who can spell Jazz Chisholm Jr. at second base and provide depth behind Chisholm, Lombard, and José Caballero. The Yankees need infield insurance, and Volpe's been mashing at Triple-A.

Why not give him another shot when rosters expand on Sept. 1? The timing couldn't be better, especially with the need for more productive depth.

Anthony Volpe's production at Triple-A sets him up for next Yankees opportunity

Volpe's minor league stint hasn't been all sunshine and rainbows, but just take a look at the numbers. Volpe is hitting .238 with an .893 OPS since getting send back down to Triple-A. Not the best numbers, but he's not going away. He has four doubles, seven homers and 15 RBI over that 22-game span.

It's time to get over the fact that the Yankees started giving Volpe reps at second base about three years too late. The past is the past. Now that we're here, the plan's fine. Bring Volpe up to play some second base, now that he's a bit more comfortable there. If he keeps hitting like this, Volpe might be a better bet against lefties than Chisholm on certain days.

It's important not to overreact to a handful of hot games against Triple-A pitching, but it's also obvious that Volpe is too good for the minors. That's not a huge surprise given Volpe's extensive MLB experience, but who would've been that shocked if Volpe went down and struggled mentally?

For example, look at what's happened to Jasson Domínguez since he was demoted at the same time as Volpe. He's striking out constantly and batting just .208 with a .582 OPS over his last 24 games.

Volpe and Domínguez are opposites at the moment. Domínguez looks like a minor leaguer, and Volpe does not. With September roster expansion around the corner, it makes sense to at least consider giving Volpe another chance.

Yankees can recall Anthony Volpe and use him as a bench player

Volpe can keep taking ground balls at second every day in preparation for late-inning sub opportunities as a pinch-runner or pinch-hitter. If he goes cold again, so be it. At least you still have a depth piece in the infield if someone gets hurt or Caballero has to play outfield on a certain day.

We've seen that Volpe isn't afraid of the big moment in the playoffs. We've also seen that he can go cold for extended stretches in the postseason. He was both clutch and awful in October last year for the Yankees.

This would be a calculated "risk" that's not much of a risk at all, given that his role wouldn't be an everyday one. The Yankees are taking necessary, desperate risks of all sorts with their bullpen situation at the moment. Bringing back Volpe would seem tame by comparison.

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