Yankees Notebook: Aaron Boone drops Anthony Volpe in the lineup
Anthony Volpe had hit leadoff in all of his starts between April 16 and May 11, but the rookie shortstop found his name penciled into the seven-hole for Friday’s game against the Rays.
Volpe had slashed .158/.186/.316 over his last 14 games heading into the night, so Aaron Boone batted Gleyber Torres first while keeping DJ LeMahieu in the middle of the order. Boone attributed the decision to the Yankees getting healthier; Harrison Bader and Aaron Judge recently returned from injuries.
“With getting some more guys back in the mix, it’s something I considered,” Boone said before insisting that dropping Volpe was not an indictment of the neophyte’s recent at-bat quality. “And [he] could end up back [leading off]. Or, as we get more guys back, [he] could end up at the bottom again. You know how I like him there. But just something I wanted to do today.”
Volpe has hit some balls hard lately — including his first-career grand slam on Wednesday — but he also walked just two times with 15 strikeouts over his last 59 plate appearances entering Friday. He chased outside the zone 32.1% of the time during that stretch, and his overall swing rate was 52%.
Volpe’s chase rate for the season was 29.9%, while his swing rate was 46.3%.
Boone, however, believes Volpe’s patience will return.
“One of the things I love about him is he goes up there very aggressive, but knowing that he has the ability to control the strike zone,” the manager said. “That will show itself over time.
“I don’t worry about him. He is a ballplayer and hooked up and confident. Rightfully so.”
Volpe entered Friday hitting .199/.292/.338 with three doubles, two triples, four home runs, 13 RBI and 11 stolen bases this season.
SEVERINO TO SOMERSET
Boone didn’t have any new updates on what the Yankees’ plans will be for Luis Severino (lat) following the righty’s second rehab start on Tuesday, but the skipper said the outing will be with Double-A Somerset.
Look for Severino to throw 60-ish pitches for the Patriots.
RAYS LOSE RASMUSSEN
Drew Rasmussen, a Yankee killer, dominated the Bombers on Thursday. On Friday, the right-hander hit the 60-day injured list with a flexor strain.
The Tampa Bay Times’ Marc Topkin reported that Rasmussen felt something wrong and lost velocity during his final batter on Thursday. The starter hopes to avoid surgery but will be shut down for eight weeks.
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