Why the Yankees Should Extend Anthony Volpe Early

As a rookie, Anthony Volpe was thrown into a nearly impossible situation becoming the Yankees' Opening Day shortstop after playing only 22 games at Triple-A. Despite a tough situation, Volpe showed serious promise with 21 home runs, 24 stolen bases, and won the Gold Glove at shortstop while struggling at the plate batting .209.

Entering his second season in the bigs it was clear that Volpe needed to become a more consistent hitter to become an MLB mainstay while helping elevate the Yankees lineup. Through 15 games the improvements Volpe made to his swing have stood out as he's batting .382 with an on base percentage of .477 leading to a 1.041 slugging percentage. The improvements have given the team a massive boost in the lineup giving the team another dangerous hitter in a lineup filled with sluggers.

The massive trend around the MLB is extending young stars before they reach arbitration as seen with Ronald Acuna, Ozzie Albies, Ceddanne Rafela, and Jackson Chourio among others. Anthony Volpe would be the perfect candidate for one of these long term deals.

For starters, Volpe will come much cheaper than he would be on the open market especially if he continues to put up consistent marks at the plate. The young shortstop also has proven to be an elite defender with a gold glove and 4 defensive runs saved early on into this season with a .966 fielding percentage.

The impact Volpe is having on this Yankees team is certainly worth extending long past his rookie contract. The deal for Volpe would likely fall in the neighborhood of Bobby Witt Jr's 11-year $288.8 Million dollar deal. Something in the same ballpark as Witt's deal would be an incredible deal for the Yankees locking up a contact hitter as opposed to some of their long-term commitments to power hitters.

The Importance of Volpe

While Anthony Volpe doesn't hit home runs often like Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, and Juan Soto, his importance is just as high as those players. Volpe getting on base consistently allows these players more opportunities for RBIs while allowing for more at-bats for the top of the lineup. On defense Volpe's range helps out with balls hit to the outfield especially when Giancarlo Stanton or lesser defenders are in the field. Overall, Volpe reaching his fullest potential is massive for the Yankees and he should be viewed as a key to the team's long-term success.

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