Aaron Boone's latest Anthony Volpe explanation has Yankees in full delusion mode
At this point, the entire world knows what's going on with Anthony Volpe. New York Yankees fans have unfortunately been beaten over the head with the topic so much that they're numb to it. It is what it is. The Yankees are not going to bench him, nor are they going to eat into his playing time significantly.
It literally doesn't matter how bad he is. Because it does not get worse than a .145/.165/.289 line over the last month. The Yankees have done little to nothing in order to alleviate the struggles. Not to mention, the defense! The defense. The defense still isn't good. Volpe leads the league with 19 errors.
So what's the recourse? Well, the logical option is to play Jose Caballero twice per week and sit Volpe against as many right-handed starters as possible but ... that's simply too logical for the Yankees. If the fans and media already suggested it's a good idea, they will never do it.
As for Aaron Boone — the manager of the Yankees — and his solution? He thinking ... and thinking ... and thinking ... three years later. On Tuesday's episode of Talkin' Yanks, Boone was asked about Volpe's struggles and the shortstop situation. Jomboy went as far to say both Jasson Dominguez and Austin Wells — two young players who have taken turns struggling on both sides of the ball this year — have lost playing time when Boone saw fit.
Boone dodged the Dominguez comparison, said the catching position is "different" than shortstop because of built-in off days (even though Wells got plenty of more games off than that), and said he hopes Anthony's best is still in front of him. "We want to get him going offensively."
Yeah man, so do we. Like last year.
Aaron Boone's latest Anthony Volpe explanation has Yankees in full delusion mode
To make it all the more hilarious, Boone said he doesn't "need to see" Caballero handling shortstop reps on an expanded basis. He already knows he's a good player and he's confident the speedster can handle it. "If I need to do something like that, I don't need to try it out."
OK ... great ... so then why don't you ... do it? We will reiterate: it currently does not get worse than Anthony Volpe. He is arguably the worst everyday player in all of baseball. It's no longer an exaggeration. If his play continues at this pace, he will finish with 2 fewer WAR than he did in each of his first two seasons. The poor play has caught up with him and there's no metric out there that justifies his inclusion in a starting lineup. We will also reiterate: we are not trying to be mean about this. But he has regressed in every aspect of the game except slugging percetange. That is it.
But what are to we expect here? Boone told reporters a week ago that he doesn't know "on what planet" a player like Volpe gets optioned to Triple-A. We know that this is a senstitive topic, but the Yankees continue to be brazen about this, which is only hurting Volpe's development and his relationship with the fanbase. It's getting all the more toxic while some of us are doing our best to keep it reasonable as we're stuck with the reality that it's a topic that cannot be avoided.
Boone made it harder on Tuesday, meaning the next Volpe stumble is going to enrage the fans that much more.
Chiefs Star Travis Kelce Explains Play That Injured Xavier Worthy
The Kansas City Chiefs not only started the season 0-1, but injury was added to insult to begin the year. Star wide receiver Xavier Worthy went down with a shoulder ailment, resulting from friendly fire of all things.
In the aftermath of Kansas City’s loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, tight end Travis Kelce is taking accountability. He dove into the now-infamous play from the game on his “New Heights” podcast.
Travis Kelce Dives Into Play That Hurt Xavier Worthy
The sequence in question was a third-and-6 in the first quarter. On a mesh-style concept, Kelce collided with Worthy, leading to a dislocated shoulder for the former first-round pick.
Kelce admitted he’s at fault for the injury. Apparently, the future Hall of Fame man didn’t execute his route assignment correctly.
“I’m supposed to be running my route at depth for Worthy,” Kelce said. “It’s frustrating for me. I was trying to kind of set up my guy to be able to get in a position, and it all just happened pretty quick. I’ve just got to be better, man. I’m 13 years in the league. There’s no excuse for me running into my own guys like that. Being able to play fast and help him out — Worthy had his guy beat — we’re out the gate, and that game starts completely different. Instead, I’m not sure where he is exactly health-wise, but I’m hoping that we get him back as fast as possible because he means so much to this team.”
It’s still unclear how much time Worthy will miss. This doesn’t seem to be a day-to-day situation, though, which makes Kelce feel even worse.
“The biggest thing is that he’s one of our best players,” Kelce said. “He’s going to take that step into being one of the best wide receivers in the National Football League. I run into him and all of a sudden, one of the biggest pieces of the game plan is out of the game. One of the fastest guys in the league — and speed kills in this league. Now, they don’t have to worry about that.”
Kelce Grateful for Chiefs’ Game in Brazil but Bummed About Worthy Injury
The Worthy injury threw a wrench in the plans of the Chiefs’ offense. They punted on the opening drive, as well as their next two possessions. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes did eventually adjust and lead five consecutive scoring series, but it wasn’t enough. Kansas City failed to slow down the Chargers’ passing attack.
A loss of both the game and a promising young wideout within the action overshadowed a massive opportunity. Kansas City, the NFL’s premier franchise right now, got a chance to expand the game in Week 1. The Friday contest took place in São Paulo, Brazil, where there are millions of football fans.
Kelce is appreciative of that stage, even if his excitement quickly turned into disappointment.
“It was a cool experience, outside of us just not getting off on the right foot,” Kelce said. “Again, I know it’s kind of sounding like a broken record from last year’s Super Bowl, but that’s on us as leaders. I’ll take the most accountability myself. I wasn’t ready [on] that first drive; I ran into one of my guys and offed him out of the game. I literally took one of my players out. That’s one of the most frustrating parts, and it’s hard to get your juices back going knowing you just hurt a guy. It’s a frustrating way to start off the season — a frustrating way to start off the game.”
In the defeat, Kelce recorded 2 catches for 47 yards and a touchdown. Wideout Marquise “Hollywood” Brown was the club’s leading receiver, logging 10 catches for 99 yards. Veteran JuJu Smith-Schuster also stepped up, going 5-for-5 on targets and adding 55 receiving yards of his own.
Kelce, in addition to the rest of the Chiefs, will now look ahead to Worthy’s hopeful return.
