Anthony Volpe is embracing Brian Cashman’s grand outlook for his second season.
“I feel my expectations for myself and kind of how we view it for the team, everyone, it’s super high,” Volpe said at the MLB Flagship Store in Manhattan on Thursday.
“I definitely know last year didn’t come close to cutting it and that’s on me. I know where I have to be, and all the work I’m doing leading up to that will be toward that goal.”
During the Yankees’ general manager’s fiery rant Tuesday in which he went scorched earth on the team’s critics, Cashman, perhaps unknowingly, placed pressure on his 22-year-old shortstop who just won the AL Gold Glove.
“I look forward to you telling me when Volpe crushes it offensively this year for us that you’ll say, ‘Hey, man, I guess your development program did a good job and it was just sea legs under him his first maiden voyage year with not much Triple-A under his belt,’ ” Cashman said.
Volpe downplayed the lack of experience that Cashman cited regarding his struggles, saying he “loved every minute” of his first season and he believes it provided him a foundation from which to build.
Volpe said he isn’t fazed by Cashman’s prediction since he knows he underperformed offensively, hitting just .209 with a .666 OPS.
“Frustrating,” Volpe said of his season, which included 21 home runs and 24 stolen bases. “We have standards we set for ourselves as a team and individually, and I don’t think anyone felt we came even close to reaching that. … I feel like it’s even more motivating. I feel like everyone is on the same thing going into this offseason and we want to make next season special.”
He added: “I can tell you no one in the clubhouse, no one in the whole organization wants to feel the way we felt this year.”
When asked about what he is trying to improve upon for 2024, Volpe said “everything.”
Volpe’s .209 batting average certainly raised eyebrows from his rookie year after he hit .262 in the minors, and he’s believed to be a player capable of hitting for average.
The shortstop plans to head to Tampa after Christmas to begin his workouts, potentially with teammates.
“I want to be a way better hitter and a lot of those numbers and results will fall into themselves,” Volpe said. “I don’t feel like I did my part really as much as I should have. I feel like the work I’m putting in and going into spring training it will put me in a way better position to succeed and help the team.”
One way for Volpe to raise that average would be to drop bunts and utilize his speed, which would be in line with what Aaron Boone told Hal Steinbrenner the team needs to do more.
While Boone told the owner the didn’t believe the franchise taught bunting enough to young players, Volpe indicated he didn’t see any issue with how it’s instructed in the minors.
“Pat McMahon is our base-running, bunting, everything coordinator in the minor leagues and he’s one of the best people in the game,” Volpe said. “He definitely stressed it to us in the minor leagues, we definitely practiced it and trained it, but I guess we didn’t necessarily do it as much.
“[To] keep on working that is going to be valuable.”
As Volpe works on his offense, his defense is already the gold standard in the AL.
Volpe said his teammates, coaches and others in the organization deserve praise for helping him win the award, and it meant lot for him to be the first Yankee rookie to do so.
Said Volpe of winning the award: “It’s definitely surreal and I don’t really know if it’s hit me yet.”
