Anthony Volpe has been criticized over the past few seasons for his underwhelming offense, as the Yankees touted him as a well-rounded hitter who could eventually become a leadoff option. His blazing speed, tantalizing power, and excellent plate discipline had drawn lofty comparisons, but in his MLB career, he’s been a glove-first shortstop who’s struggled to do much on offense.
Last season, it looked as if Volpe had figured it out in May before crumbling in the months following, as his quality of contact numbers revealed a mirage in his success at the plate. His poor pitch recognition, coupled with below-average power, made Volpe a complete liability with the bat, but this year we’re seeing a new version of the young infielder.
Doing more damage on contact than ever before, Anthony Volpe has a 126 wRC+ and .786 OPS through his first 32 games of the season, but is this another mirage, or are we seeing the long-anticipated breakout?
Yankees Are Seeing New Version of Anthony Volpe at the Plate
Anthony Volpe had a 114 wRC+ entering play on May 3rd last season, and his season would end with an 86 wRC+ as his offensive success crumbled. The reason for that slump was his lack of power; Volpe didn’t do much damage on contact during his red-hot start and relied on an unsustainably high BABIP to remain productive. He had a .307 xwOBA and 4.3% Barrel% at that point of the season, but this year is a completely different story when you look at the underlying numbers.
Not only is his 126 wRC+ higher than it was at this time last year, but his .353 xwOBA is higher than his actual wOBA of .346, indicating that he’s getting the results he deserves based on his strikeout rates, walk rates, and quality of contact. It has been a massive step forward in the quality of contact department specifically, with a 10.8% Barrel% and 91.8 MPH Average Exit Velocity. Volpe is smashing the ball consistently right now, hitting rockets at a higher rate than we saw in 2024.
Last season, Anthony Volpe had 19 batted balls with an exit velocity greater than or equal to 105 MPH, but this year he already has 13 batted balls >= 105 MPH. The Yankees are seeing a massive improvement in his ability to do damage at the plate, and it could fuel a sustainable run of success at the plate if he keeps it up.
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Swinging the bat considerably harder has resulted in more damage contact, as Anthony Volpe is hitting the ball harder and seeing it turn into extra base hits. Volpe is one of just 11 hitters with 10 or more doubles, and with five home runs to his name as well, the SLG% is much higher than it was last season. This version of the shortstop closely resembles what we saw in his rookie season, although even that season can’t compare in terms of batted ball quality. Another key distinction between rookie Volpe and 2025 Volpe stems from the swing decisions.
Plenty of people have pointed out that while Anthony Volpe’s power outage in 2024 was a problem, his poor approach and plate discipline were far more alarming. He was known for being a patient hitter who could work walks in the Minor Leagues, but he had yet to finish a season with an OBP north of .300 or a Chase Rate better than the league average. So far, we’re seeing a massive improvement in plate discipline, as he’s gone from the 28th Percentile in SEAGER to the 67th Percentile from 2024 to 2025.
SEAGER is a swing decision metric that weighs how often you swing out of zone with how often you swing in-zone, punishing hitters who chase frequently but also punishing hitters who watch hittable pitches go right by them. Volpe’s improvement in this metric stems from his Chase% going from 29.3% to 21.4%, which puts him in the 85th Percentile for MLB hitters. He’s also swinging at more hittable pitches, and that improved control of the strike zone is resulting in him getting ahead in the count and forcing a pitcher to either walk him or give him a pitch to crush.
These improvements haven’t come without their drawbacks. Anthony Volpe is whiffing at a similar rate to his 2023 season, where he struck out 167 times, but I’ll take more strikeouts if they come with more walks and home runs. It isn’t an easy balance for hitters, and I expect Anthony Volpe to continue having his peaks and valleys, but if he sticks to this approach, he’ll have sustainable success at the plate.
A brilliant defensive player, Anthony Volpe’s ceiling is incredibly high, and his floor is pretty solid as well because he’ll always generate value with his glove and legs. If he can be even a league-average hitter this season, we’re looking at a potential 4 WAR player, which would be a great outcome for a third-year shortstop. Right now, he’s on pace for 5.2 fWAR over 150 games and 7.0 bWAR, which would be an All-Star caliber season that puts him right in the middle of the conversation about who the 10 best shortstops are.
Anthony Volpe will have stretches where he can’t hit a fastball over the middle of the plate or chase sliders out of the zone, but when he’s red-hot, he can do some serious damage for the Yankees.