Anthony Volpe cues Giancarlo Stanton 400th home run curtain call with veteran move

History is all the Yankees have left to play for in 2023, and letting their rookies marinate while watching the team's high-priced veterans attain milestones isn't an awful way to spend a September.

Want a first-hand piece of evidence that this rookie class "gets it"? Look no further than how 22-year-old Anthony Volpe -- suddenly the elder statesman in a locker room full of recent promotions -- handled Giancarlo Stanton's tiebreaking 400th home run on Tuesday evening.

With two outs and a man on base, Stanton hit a trademark laser into the bleachers above the left-center bullpen, breaking a 1-1 tie and continuing his quest to prove his worth down the stretch.

Though his reputation has taken a hit this season (a 94 OPS+ will do that to a man...), he's still just 33 years old and stuck with the Yankees for the next several seasons, for better or worse. At the very least, the man can still mash high-exit-velocity homers. Tuesday's blast was Stanton's 22nd of an abbreviated season and the 400th of his storied career.

To make sure the moment registered with a crowd full of fans who were mostly there to see Jasson Dominguez, Volpe took a timeout before coming to the plate to make sure the achievement had enough time to flash on the jumbotron. Stanton got his curtain call.

Yankees slugger Giancarlo Stanton moves closer to Hall of Fame with milestone 400th home run

Volpe's poise has been on display with consistency since the chicken parm-based line in the sand, and Tuesday was just another example of how his awareness spreads beyond the field of play.

While the youngster's legacy remains unwritten, Stanton's book appears to be closer to its conclusion than its meaty middle. Still, the power is there, and every homer the righty drills now is one he doesn't need down the line as he attempts to reach 500 career moonshots.

If he stays healthy (the largest "if" in the world), it's really not too far out of reach. Until the steroid era, that number was an automatic signifier of a path to Cooperstown. Add Stanton's MVP and his half-career in the spotlight at Yankee Stadium (and, of course, his one-of-a-kind skill set), and there's a chance he could earn enshrinement if the numbers add up.

Credit to Volpe for making sure this stop along the way wasn't forgotten.