Yankees signing Paul DeJong feels like slap in face to fans over Anthony Volpe debate

Even before the New York Yankees signed Paul DeJong to a minor-league contract, it was clear no upgrades would be made at shortstop to insure the team against Anthony Volpe's injury/lackluster play. It always felt like they were going to rely on Jose Caballero and Oswaldo Cabrera.

And honestly? That was fine. Fans resigned themselves to the reality that Volpe is getting one final, undeserved chance in 2026 and we'll live with the likely non-tender/trade after that. But when DeJong was officially signed? That felt like a giant "F--- You" to the fans.

Why? Because DeJong is an insurance policy of sorts. And the Yankees went the most uninspiring route possible. They were honestly better off doing nothing as opposed to bringing attention to the shortstop matter with such a disappointing move.

Are there plentiful shortstop options out there? No. The Yankees missed the boat on several occasions over the years. This offseason, they could've gone after Ha-Seong Kim, but decided against it. According to reports, they don't view Bo Bichette as a shortstop option, so there goes another one.

Instead, they went with DeJong, which was sending the fans a message: we don't care what you think and we believe in the flawed roster/player development system we've employed for two decades.

Yankees signing Paul DeJong is slap in the face to fans over Anthony Volpe debate

The Volpe insurance should've been signed four years ago in the form of Corey Seager, who eventually could've shifted over to third base if/when Volpe was ready. Instead, the alternative has been to watch Volpe flounder for three years, make him play through an injury, jeopardize his development, and stick with him for a fourth year when he's coming off surgery and arguably had his worst season to date. And now if something were to happen to Caballero or Cabrera in the early going with Volpe expected to miss a couple of months? Paul DeJong, who has been a below-average hitter (92 OPS+) for his entire career.

DeJong does nothing other than add a body in the event of an emergency. He doesn't foster competition. He adds no inherent value of any kind. He's a 32-year-old journeyman who has logged 2.4 WAR since the start of 2020.

All this does is fall in line with how the Yankees have operated (for the most part) during the Aaron Judge era. Do they make impact moves? Yes. Do they field a playoff-caliber team? Yes. But they do not go above and beyond. They create their own obstacles and constraints rather than aggressively upgrade, even when we're talking about non-blockbuster moves.

Meanwhile, the Blue Jays are stocking up like there's no tomorrow, the Dodgers remain the behemoth to beat, and the Mets are even taking part in an overhaul after recognizing there was something very wrong with their 2025 roster. The Yankees' counter? They're content with waiting out Bellinger's market and remaining silent elsewhere. They're totally fine with platoon options at shortstop while they wait for their "starter" (an 84 OPS+ hitter) to return.

If you can't see why fans feel like they couldn't be further removed from the team's thinking, then the front office might have you under its spell.