New York Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe recorded his first two career big-league hits on Saturday. He first lined a two-strike, two-out single to left against San Francisco Giants right-hander Alex Cobb. He laced a single to center against closer Camilo Doval in the ninth inning as well (SF 7, NY 5). Volpe has reached base in three of his seven plate appearances in the early going.
Here are Volpe's first two career hits. He stole second base after his first hit and is the first Yankee to steal a base in each of his first two MLB games since Fritz Maisel in 1913, per the YES Network.
"Everything with the clock now happens pretty fast, so I was just trying to focus on if there was any opportunity to steal a base. At the same time, take it all in," Volpe said when asked went through his mind following his first hit (video). He added the baseball from his first hit will go to his parents' house in New Jersey.
Volpe, 21, won the Yankees starting shortstop job (beating out fellow youngster Oswald Peraza and veteran Isiah Kiner-Falefa) with a strong effort in the spring. Prior to being named New York's starter at the six, CBS Sports ranked him as the 12th best prospect in the minors. Here's what we wrote at the time:
Volpe enjoyed a breakout 2021 season, homering 27 times after adding muscle to his frame. He didn't match that performance last season -- he outright struggled during a 22-game introduction to Triple-A, striking out 30 percent of the time -- thereby delaying his debut until sometime next summer. Volpe still projects as an above-average hitter who can contribute in each of the slash line categories. Defensively, he'll have to continue to prove that he can make all the plays at short despite a substandard arm. It's possible that he'll eventually end up at the keystone.
Volpe has now started and batted ninth in both of New York's contests. Kiner-Falefa, last season's starting shortstop, has moved into a utility role and has not played in either of the Yankees' first two games. Peraza is in Triple-A.
