Yankees insider has withering response to Anthony Volpe's struggles

Joel Sherman of the New York Post didn't mince words while prescribing the Yankees an Anthony Volpe solution this week — though Volpe's dad should probably skip the podcast episode.

Before getting to the heart of the matter and offering his solution to the Yankees' current prominent regression monster, Sherman took some time out of his Pinstripe Post podcast segment to remind fans clamoring for George Lombard Jr. and Spencer Jones next spring that ... well ... most of the time, turning the keys over to an unproven rookie gets you something that looks a lot like Volpe.

Technically, the third-year Yankees shortstop is in the midst of his most productive season offensively, posting a 94 OPS+ and .695 OPS (after maintaining marks above 100/.700 for much of the season). That level of "personal best" hasn't been good enough; after suffering through an identity crisis between Year 1 and 2 regarding power-hitting vs. situational work, he's now lost his calling card (his glove) while still failing to deliver adequate offense, and falling especially flat with runners on base.

How does Sherman see the tide beginning to turn? It won't happen unless the Yankees move him to ninth in the order and ask — no, beg — him to rededicate himself to defense and doing the simple things on the diamond.

Yankees' Anthony Volpe must move to ninth in the lineup, keep his walk rate up, and turn the order over

His walk rate's the best of his career; keep that up. His power output's been acceptable. But he needs to create more havoc on the bases, and he needs to take the simple solutions that are handed to him, from a small-ball perspective.

Most of all, he needs to be shoved out of the spotlight, with his opportunities to leave men on base intentionally minimized.

"He is coming up with the most runners on base, over and over, and his approach with runners on base and the way he's being attacked, he is killing them offensively," Sherman bluntly stated.

To get "out of his head," Volpe must get back to basics, something he's struggled with for 2.5 years outside of the smallest of sample sizes. Thankfully, for Volpe and his Yankees legacy, one of those samples came during the ALCS and World Series last year.

Right now, the idea of Volpe as a genuine difference-maker feels like a pipe dream, and his nebulous defensive WAR contributions have all but disappeared; as Sherman noted, he failed to make a "major-league play" in knocking down Pete Alonso's hotshot grounder during the Subway Series over fourth of July weekend.

The freer he gets, the more of an impact he can make, though, and that freedom will only come from the bottom of the lineup.