The list of the top 10 shortstops for 2023 by MLB Pipeline was out on Tuesday. Anthony Volpe of the Yankees was at the top of the list while Oswald Peraza did not make it to the top 10 list and it may come as a bit of a surprise. The listing has added to the ongoing hype surrounding Volpe as the Yankees’ next shortstop.
During spring training, the Yankees will be looking for a starting shortstop. Oswald Peraza, a top-three organizational prospect who made his big league debut late last season and played well at the plate and in the field, is the favorite to get the job.
Isiah Kiner-Falefa, who was a regular in 2022, and Anthony Volpe, who was born in New Jersey and is being compared to Derek Jeter, his childhood hero, are also in the running. Volpe is the Yankees’ No. 1 prospect. However, his chance of starting out for the RailRiders is not that bright because he had only played a limited number of games at the Double-A level or higher.
| MLB Pipeline’s top 10 shortstops | Team | |
| 1 | Anthony Volpe | New York Yankees |
| 2 | Marcelo Mayer | Boston Red Sox |
| 3 | Elly De La Cruz | Cincinnati Reds |
| 4 | Jordan Lawlar | Arizona Diamondbacks |
| 5 | Jackson Holliday | Baltimore Orioles |
| 6 | Jackson Merrill | San Diego Padres |
| 7 | Marco Luciano | San Francisco Giants |
| 8 | Ezequiel Tovar | Colorado Rockies |
| 9 | Noelvi Marte | Cincinnati Reds |
| 10 | Brooks Lee | Minnesota Twins |
Many view Anthony Volpe as a future star, no matter who starts where this season. A year ago, Volpe was ranked second among shortstop prospects and Peraza wasn’t even in the top 10.
Players can be in MLB Pipeline’s rankings subject to the condition that “they have enough at-bats (130), innings pitched (50), or service time (45 days) to be considered for Rookie of the Year.” Last season, Peraza played for the Yankees for 35 days and had 45 at-bats.
On Thursday night, MLB Pipeline will release its list of the top 100 prospects. All of the best shortstops will be in the top 40.
Anthony Volpe, who will be 22 in April, hit .249 with 21 home runs, 65 RBI, 50 steals, and an OPS of .802 in 110 games last year. He played the first 110 games with the Double-A Somerset Patriots and the last 22 with the Triple-A RailRiders.
Anthony Volpe played shortstop for 127 games and had 449 chances to field the ball. In those 127 games, he made 13 errors out of 449 chances.
Manager Aaron Boone isn’t saying that Anthony Volpe can’t win the Yankees’ shortstop job this spring.
“Obviously we’re really excited about Anthony Volpe and think he’s going to be a really good player for us for a lot of years,” Boone on Yankees Hot Stove. “And we’ll see him in spring training, He’s going to get a lot of reps. He hasn’t had a lot of Triple-A time yet, but you never know. He could still kick the door in and force the onus on us.”
Peraza is from Venezuela and will turn 23 in June. He spent most of last season in Triple-A, where he put up good numbers. He hit .259 with 19 home runs, 50 RBI, 33 steals, and an OPS of .777 in 99 games with the RailRiders.
Peraza had the same .971 fielding percentage as Anthony Volpe when he played in the minor leagues. Volpe was ranked No. 5 in the most recent list for 2022.
After being called up to the Yankees on September 1, Peraza hit .306 with one home run in 18 games. He made no mistakes in the 12 games he played at shortstop and the 4 games he played at second base. This spring, it’s likely that Peraza will lose his job. But if he’s not ready, he’ll go back to Triple-A and may share shortstop duties with Anthony Volpe, who also plays second base.
According to Boone, “We do feel like certainly with Peraza playing almost the full season at Triple-A and continuing to climb the ladder and perform well at the minor-league level … And then I was really pleased how well he handled himself at the big-league level as far as his preparation, his work, the way he fit in, the way he performed between the lines. He’s going to have a real opportunity and get a lot of chances. I’m really excited about him.”
People have long thought that the New York Yankees would rather buy talent than train it. The Yankees aren’t known as a team that plays “the kids.” They go after free agents and trade prospects for big-money stars.
But it’s not like the Yankees’ minor league team doesn’t have any good players. Both in the infield and the outfield, New York has a lot of exciting prospects. There’s a good chance that they have the next Derek Jeter waiting in the wings, and he may be on his way to Yankee Stadium soon. Anthony Volpe could be that player.
Where Anthony Volpe stands?
Many Yankees fans and baseball pundits see Anthony Volpe as a potential shortstop prospect. Since Derek Jeter left the position in 2014, it has been filled by different people over and over again. With his promotion, that may soon stop.
MLB.com and @TalkinYanks say that Volpe is not only the best shortstop prospect in baseball, but that he is also expected to play in the big leagues this season.
Anthony Volpe hasn’t thrown a ball for the Yankees yet. He played in the minor leagues for the first time in 2019, and last year he split his time between AA Patriots and AAA RailRiders. The 21-year-old has hit .263 with 50 home runs and 162 RBIs in three seasons in the minor leagues.
Anthony Volpe will have to beat out a few other players, though, if he wants to be the starting shortstop for the Yankees when he gets there. Unless the team makes a trade, Fangraphs thinks that another young player, Peraza, will be the team’s shortstop on Opening Day.
Yankees fans still have a lot of doubts about how GM Brian Cashman and manager Aaron Boone will treat Anthony Volpe, their newly named best shortstop prospect.
And, of course, there will always be someone who ruins the fun. Yet, the New York Yankees haven’t done a good job of developing homegrown talent in the past. Aaron Judge, the American League MVP outfielder, is a notable exception from the last few years. Fans of the Bronx Bombers can’t be blamed for being a bit skeptical.
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