Aaron Boone Reveals Reason for New York Yankees Dropping Anthony Volpe in Lineup

New York Yankees skipper Aaron Boone spoke about why he dropped Anthony Volpe in the batting order.

Jul 3, 2024; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe (11) hits a two run double in the seventh inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Yankee Stadium. / Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports

It's been a rough past few weeks for the New York Yankees. as they're now 2.0 games out in the American League East after sitting in first place for much of the season.

2-8 over their last 10 games, there haven't been many bright spots on either side of the baseball. If it weren't for Aaron Judge continuing his MVP campaign and proving to be the best player in baseball, the situation would be even worse.

Mostly outside of Judge, the Yankees haven't done anything to produce offensively.

Anthony Volpe has struggled during this stretch, perhaps more than anyone. He has just a .228 OBP over his last 163 plate appearances, an issue considering New York wants to manufacture runs with Juan Soto and Judge right behind him.

If Volpe had swung the bat the way he did to start the year, the Yankees offense would be in a much better position. Instead, they've struggled to put runs together like never before.

As a result of Volpe's struggles, manager Aaron Boone took him out of the leadoff spot, hitting him sixth in the lineup. Rookie Ben Rice led off as they tried to get something going.

Boone spoke about why he dropped Volpe in the batting order to reporters. He had the following to say, according to Chris Kirschner of The Athletic.

“I wanted to shake it up a little bit and give Volpe a blow from that spot,” Boone said.

“It doesn’t mean he won’t go back in there. I just feel like the at-bats Ben continues to string together here, just trying to optimize that spot and getting guys on base in front of the big boys. I feel like the consistency of the quality of the at-bat we’ve seen from him hopefully lends itself to get on a couple of times in front of the boys.”

Perhaps a change of scenery is all Volpe needs. In his defense, he's still just 23 years old. Being the starting shortstop in the Bronx at 23 isn't an easy task, as many before and plenty after have or will run into the same struggles.

Throughout his young career, he's shown that he's capable of being a high-level player, which is what New York ultimately needs.

Boone understands his struggles and expects him to figure it out.

"I think we’re going to look up at the end of the year and see a good offensive player when it’s all said and done. That’s part of the ebb and flow of when you’re making adjustments. The league is making adjustments to you. I just feel like that’s part of the developmental process.”

Hopefully, that'll be the case in the near future, as the Yankees need all the help they can get.