NEW YORK – Anthony Volpe received no promises when he packed his bags in early August, uncertain when – or if – he might walk into Yankee Stadium again. Spending the better part of a month with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, there was only one thing to do: Get to work.
“There was nothing guaranteed,” Volpe said. “You can’t control it. I never thought I was going to be back here in this moment, but I wanted to be ready and prepared in case something happened.”
Even in his wildest bus-ride dreams, Volpe might not have pictured what awaited him on Thursday evening. Volpe returned to the Bronx with a flourish, belting a grand slam and earning a curtain call as part of a three-hit, five-RBI performance in the Yankees’ 10-3 victory over the Rockies.
“You root for games like that, especially with how hard he’s been working and everything he’s been doing in Triple-A,” said Yankees starter Max Fried. “Coming up, a new position for the first time up here, and he just made an immediate impact.”
The victory completed a three-game sweep of Colorado and helped the Yankees (84-62) improve to a season-high 22 games over .500, moving within three games of the American League East-leading Rays (87-59).
Having gone without a grand slam through their first 144 games, the Yanks now have a pair, with rookie George Lombard Jr. belting one on Wednesday. It’s the first time the franchise has had grand slams in consecutive games by players age 25 or younger, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
Fried labored to record 10 outs, but the Yankees won for the ninth time in 13 games as Luis García Jr. continued to impress, belting his career-high 30th home run – seven of which have come since being traded to the Yankees.
Cody Bellinger also lifted a sacrifice fly facing Ryan Feltner, who allowed four runs in five innings. Spencer Jones added a two-run single in the seventh, but the offensive star was Volpe, who was optioned when the Yankees promoted Lombard as their shortstop of the future.
Recalled when the Yankees placed Jazz Chisholm Jr. on the injured list with a right wrist sprain, Volpe made the most of the opportunity.
“He hasn’t done anything but continue to work and grind, and got his way back here,” manager Aaron Boone said. “He had a massive impact tonight, and it’s really good to see him having the quality of at-bats he did.”
At Triple-A, Volpe made 19 starts at second base, three at third base and 15 at shortstop. Thursday marked his first Major League game at second base, and he handled his chances without incident. Volpe committed one error in 162 1/3 Triple-A innings as a second baseman (.987 fielding percentage).
Boone said he has been told that Volpe “has been swinging the bat incredibly well for a while now” in the Minors, something teammate Jasson Domínguez touched upon during the Padres series, when he remarked that Volpe “became Barry Bonds all of a sudden” with the RailRiders.
Asked about the Bonds comparison, Volpe laughed and said, “I don’t know about that.” He credited the Triple-A coaches, specifically bench coach Gil Velazquez and hitting coach Michael Mergenthaler, and said he took his cues from Oswaldo Cabrera – invigorated by the utilityman’s positivity.
“You see how he’s just enjoying playing and having fun,” Volpe said. “I feel like if you don’t do that when you’re down there, you’ll stick out like a sore thumb.”
The grand slam, hit off Jimmy Herget, was Volpe’s third career slam – including one in the 2024 World Series against the Dodgers. Volpe said he “blacked out” when the crowd chanted for him to acknowledge them.
“Everyone was ushering me out there,” Volpe said. “It happened pretty quick.”
Boone said he sees subtle adjustments at the plate in Volpe, who struggled in 56 big league games this season after returning from offseason left shoulder surgery, batting .240/.325/.322 with one homer and 19 RBIs.
“I thought he looked really good – really under control,” Boone said. “He controlled the strike zone, patient at-bats, while also delivering some blows.”
With Chisholm saying earlier Thursday that he intends to return during the club’s next homestand, there are still no long-term promises about Volpe’s playing time. Boone offered several variations of, “We’ll see,” when quizzed on the topic.
Volpe understands. A month ago, he didn’t know if he’d make it back to Yankee Stadium at all. For now, being here is enough.
“This is a special place, for sure,” Volpe said. “You wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world. But there’s still a lot of work to do.”