Yankees top prospect — not Jose Caballero — can force tough Anthony Volpe situation

Dating back to last season after the trade deadline, the elephant in the room was Jose Caballero coming for Anthony Volpe's job at shortstop. Most Yankees fans never truly believed it would become a reality even if Caballero proved he was better, but it at least gave them more fuel than "absolutely nobody behind Volpe on the shortstop depth chart."

Caballero did indeed outperform Volpe on the whole, but only really got consistent playing time when Volpe needed a cortisone injection to address his ailing shoulder. Come 2026, Caballero will be the team's starting shortstop with Volpe expected to miss at least the first month of the year after undergoing surgery.

But is it Caballero who represents a long-term threat to Volpe's job security? He's a good player, but he's more of an elite utility option with his ability to play second, short, third and the corner outfield spots. He's never been regarded as a full-time shortstop.

Perhaps top prospect George Lombard Jr.'s emergence during spring training could begin sounding the alarm for Volpe's future over the next six months or so. And for those at home thinking the timeline might be far off ... well, it's not entirely. Volpe appeared in just one spring training before joining the Yankees full-time in 2023. Back in 2022, he received five at-bats and went 0-for-5 with two strikeouts. Then, he dominated the next spring but didn't have a good regular season. Mind you, this was with him getting only 110 games at Double-A and 22 at Triple-A.

Lombard Jr. has now been with the Yankees for two spring trainings in a row. Last year was his first taste, and he hit .231 with a .748 OPS, two homers and four RBI. Not bad for a 20-year-old. Fast forward to 2026, and he's 2-for-8 with five RBI, five walks and two stolen bases (.913 OPS) while flashing the leather defensively. Brian Cashman has mentioned Lombard Jr.'s glove is "big league ready."

Could George Lombard Jr. be the version of Anthony Volpe the Yankees envisioned?

Might there be an argument Lombard Jr.'s already on the path to supplant Volpe? He has plenty of questions to answer after his troubling Double-A stint in 2025 (.215 AVG, .695 OPS, 124 strikeouts in 108 games). His sucess in spring training hasn't exactly come against good pitching, either. His two hits came against former Yankee Clayton Beeter (who is a fringe major leaguer at best) and Nick Trabacchi, who was in Independent ball last year. As those who have followed him, it's clear the bat needs work.

But it's clear he has elite talent for a prospect his age There's no denying some of these metrics as well as the eye test. Can't overlook the five walks and two strikeouts in 13 plate appearances, either. That's a tremendous improvement over his 2025 plate discipline at Double-A, even if it's a small sample size (considering he's facing better talent this spring).

All we're saying? This isn't out of the realm of possibility come July depending on how the Yankees are looking on the left side of the infield and if Lombard Jr.'s bat manages to take a big leap over the next few months. It's important to note that this isn't some analysis in a vacuum from Yankees fans — MLB Network is talking about it because of Lombard Jr.'s league-wide pedigree.

Historically, highly-rated Yankees prospects have not panned out for the better part of the last 25 years. It's just the reality of the situation. But Cam Schlittler and Ben Rice have perhaps revived the conversation. The early hype (and solid performance) from pitchers Carlos Lagrange, Elmer Rodriguez and Ben Hess is also playing a role in turning the tides for New York.

Lombard Jr., the organization's No. 1 prospect, is helping the cause as well. He may not be the first to make an impact at the MLB level of this group, but his eventual arrival could be the most influential.