Oswald Peraza entered the Yankees’ 2023 spring training camp as the heavy favorite to unseat Isiah Kiner-Falefa as the starting shortstop. However, he was sent down to Triple-A Scranton on Sunday to begin the upcoming 2023 campaign, and Anthony Volpe won the job outpacing him.
After spending the final few weeks of the 2022 season with the Yankees MLB team, Oswald Peraza will be sent down to the RailRiders to begin the upcoming 2023 campaign.
After Sunday’s 6-2 victory over the Blue Jays, the Yankees got closer to finalizing their Opening Day roster. The big story was the announcement that Anthony Volpe had made the team and the optioning of Oswald Peraza to Triple-A. A month ago, this turn of events would not have been expected, but planning for it has been underway for the past week or so.
“As you know, we entered camp with an open competition,” general manager Brian Cashman said. “We said it publicly and we said it privately. The obvious explanation point here is Anthony Volpe came into camp and took this position. It was well played.”
Oswald Peraza came into camp with a significant advantage over his main competitors for a starting role with the team. After filling in for Isiah Kiner-Falefa late in the season and making key postseason starts, he was in a position to win the starting shortstop job outright with a strong spring training. When compared to the other elite infielder in the Yankees’ system, current top prospect Anthony Volpe, he was also a bit further along in his development.
Where did Oswald Peraza fall short?
Anthony Volpe bested Oswald Peraza in a matchup of two top prospects while Kiner-Falefa dropped out of the picture and shifted to a utility role in early March. On the field, both players were outstanding, but Volpe had the better bat. In 17 games, he hit.314, had 10 RBIs, and 5 SBs, while Oswald Peraza hit .190 in 15 games.
Even Oswald Peraza had admitted that Anthony Volpe stole the limelight with his performance.
“When you look at the results that (Volpe) has gotten … really, really good results,” Peraza said. “Everybody has seen it. He has a bright future ahead of him. I can see it. Everybody can see it.”
Early in the spring, Oswald Peraza was doing well, but he suffered a leg injury while running through first base and missed a few games. He came back on March 9 and didn’t miss any more time due to rest, but his batting slump may have been triggered by the initial injury; his career slash line is.190/.306/.310, which wasn’t enough to convince the team he was ready to contribute right away.
It wasn’t just his own performance, of course. Anthony Volpe made it a genuine contest by slashing.314/.417/.647 at the plate, solidifying his place in the conversation and ultimately dominating it. With Oswald Cabrera and Gleyber Torres already on the roster, it was difficult to find room for both Volpe and Oswald Peraza in the infield. The immediate future of Oswald Peraza became clear after Volpe’s victory.
On Sunday, the Yankees cut seven players, including Oswald Peraza. Non-roster players catcher Carlos Narvaez and relievers Nick Ramirez, James Norwood, and Tyler Danish were reassigned, and left-handed reliever Matt Krook was also optioned.
Fans reacted with surprise after Oswald Peraza’s demotion
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