The Yankees selected Delbarton High School shortstop Anthony Volpe, 18, with the No. 30 overall pick in the 2019 MLB Draft on Monday night.
Volpe has hit .488 with seven bombs and 34 RBI this season.
Volpe was the draft’s No. 63 overall prospect, via MLB Pipeline. Here’s what the website had to say about him:
Scouts have been able to get a two-for-one deal when traveling to Delbarton Prep in northern New Jersey. Not only could they see right-hander Jack Leiter, but they could get a look at Volpe, who has shone under the spotlight, including for Team USA's gold medal-winning 18-and-under team last fall and then for Delbarton when they competed at USA Baseball's National High School Invitational this spring.
Volpe is the kind of player who grows on evaluators the more they see him, with his whole being greater than the sum of his parts. He gets an 80 on the 20-to-80 scouting scale for his makeup and work ethic. He does have a solid approach at the plate with excellent bat control and while he doesn’t have a ton of power, there is enough strength to keep pitchers honest, like when he went deep at the NHSI. Though he’s not a burner, Volpe runs well and has good instincts on the bases and defensively. He has good hands and footwork and while he might have an average arm, some feel it might mean that second base will be a better long-term home for him, even if a team sends him out as a shortstop initially
Because of his track record for performing well against good competition and his makeup, it might be wrong to bet against Volpe. Whether a team is willing to draft him early enough to sign him away from his commitment to Vanderbilt, where he could continue being teammates with Leiter if neither signs, remains to be seen.
Last year, Director of Amateur Scouting Damon Oppenheimer picked catcher Anthony Seigler with the team’s top selection.
MLB Pipeline currently ranks the 19-year-old Seigler as the team’s No. 6 overall prospect.
Here are some Yankees facts you should know, via the team’s PR department:
- The Yankees finished 4-2 on their six-game homestand...are 21-12 at home this season (17-8 on the road)...are still 15-4 since 5/12, 20-6 since 5/5, and a Major League-best 30-10 since 4/19.
- Marked their first loss vs. Boston this season (4-1).
- Are 10-3 to begin a stretch of 17-of-26 games on the road from 5/20-6/16 (6-1 on the road, 4-2 at home).
- The game featured the active wins leader vs. the Red Sox (CC Sabathia, now 18-14) and the active wins leader vs. the Yankees (David Price, now 16- 14)...Price is also second on the active wins list vs. Boston.
Brendan Kuty may be reached at bkuty@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @BrendanKutyNJ. Find NJ.com Yankees on Facebook.