George Lombard Jr. is pushing Yankees' comfortability to the limit right now

With Anthony Volpe being excited (we think?) to get back on the field with his rehab assignment now being transferred to Triple-A, New York Yankees' worlds have collided. The last top shortstop prospect is met the potential future as he teamed up with the red-hot George Lombard Jr. for a brief moment in time.

The comparisons were bound to come as today's disappointment meets tomorrow's hope, and now that they've had a few games together, the microscope has already been broken out.

Lombard Jr. has moved to third in deference to the elder Volpe, and almost immediately their defensive chops have been scrutinized, and the results probably aren't what the Yankees wanted to see.

In the clip above, the difference is clear. Volpe cleanly fields a routine chopper but then fires an underpowered lawn dart to first. He got the out, but impressive isn't the first word that comes to mind. Lombard Jr., on the other hand, ranges far to his right to nab another chopper and then unleashes a chest-high laser to record the out.

Offensively, Volpe and his new swing have played four games and hit .364/.417/.364. The slug has been absent; he's still striking out a quarter of the time, but all in all, things could be worse. Lombard Jr. is still sizzling, with a .365/.433/.654, drawing high praise from rehabbing Phillies' ace Zack Wheeler after he shot a double to deep right-center during their first matchup.

When they faced each other for the second time over the weekend, Lombard Jr. took Wheeler deep to dead center.

With the No. 1 prospect seemingly on the verge of a bump to Triple-A and potentially on the fast track to a big league job, a roster controversy could be on the horizon.

Anthony Volpe, George Lombard Jr. duking it out in Somerset could be a Yankees' nightmare or dream

It's not news at this point that the Yankees have been steadfast in their defense of Volpe despite all the struggles and stagnation. The mind-boggling blunders are waved away. The slumps have been dismissed. The accountability has been fleeting.

Volpe has never had a true challenger before. He was the Yankees' No. 1 prospect at a certain point in time, and it's clear that no matter how many at-bats he's racked up or innings he's played in the field, Brian Cashman, Aaron Boone, and the rest of the regime have stubbornly held on to their initial evaluation of the 25-year-old.

Now that Lombard Jr. is the No. 1 prospect that has everyone throughout the organization looking at him with stars in their eyes, it will be interesting to see what happens if Lombard Jr. continues on his torrid pace and what will happen if Volpe struggles as normal once he returns.

Is there a certain point where Lombard Jr. comes for Volpe's job? How would the team react if its hand is forced?

There's a way this has a happy ending. Ryan McMahon should be on the chopping block. Jazz Chisholm Jr.'s chances at 50-50 plummet by the day as his homer-less streak extends, and his exit at season's end now seems like a foregone conclusion. Lombard Jr. has positional versatility. Could he take over at the hot corner? Could he be next year's starting second baseman, or, better yet, kick Volpe over to the keystone?

If they're both hitting well, it will be a dream. But if Volpe ends up struggling upon his big league return, folks might point back to this short stint as the official point of inflection.

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