Kim Ha-sung, who cannot give up the possibility of moving in the FA market due to the collapse of Yankees GG shortstop hitting and defense, had been healthy

Aug 26, 2025

Kim Ha-sung, who cannot give up the possibility of moving in the FA market due to the collapse of Yankees GG shortstop hitting and defense, had been healthy
New York Yankees shortstop Anthony Wolfie is sluggish in offense and defense in the second half of the year. ImagesYonhap News



Kim Ha-sung, who cannot give up the possibility of moving in the FA market due to the collapse of Yankees GG shortstop hitting and defense, had been healthy
Anthony Wolfie has suffered a severe slump of 1 for 28 in his last 9 games. AFP Yonhap News
Anthony Volpi is the main shortstop of the New York Yankees.

Volpi, a former first-round draft player in 2019, was spotlighted as a top prospect by showing off his outstanding defense and one-shot hitting skills at Yankees Farm, but he took over as a key shortstop as soon as he made his major league debut in 2023. Since Derek Jeter retired, Isaiah Kiner-Falefa, Gleyber Torres and Didi Gregorius have been in charge, but not satisfied.

With Volpi's addition, the Yankees smiled big time.




In 159 games that year, Volpi ranked eighth in the AL Rookie of the Year vote by batting .209, 21 homers, 60 RBIs, 62 runs, 24 steals, and 0.666 OPS, and in particular, won the Gold Glove and announced the birth of a large shortstop with offense and defense.

He showed a step up in contact heating with a batting average of 0.243, 12 home runs, 60 RBIs, 90 points, 28 steals, and 0.657 OPS in 160 games last year, and was also included in the Gold Glove Finalist in the shortstop category in defense.

Kim Ha-sung, who cannot give up the possibility of moving in the FA market due to the collapse of Yankees GG shortstop hitting and defense, had been healthy
Anthony Volpi, who won AL Shortstop Gold Glove in 2023. ImagesYonhap News
But this year, Wolfie has been suffering through the airlift. There is a slump in which it is difficult to clearly grasp the reason. In the end, Yankees manager Aaron Boone gave Volpi a break. He was excluded from the starting lineup for 25-26 consecutive days. Utility Jose Caballero, who was recently traded from the Tampa Bay Rays, was used for Volpey's position.




Volpi has a batting average of 0.208 (95 hits in 457 at-bats), 18 homers, 65 RBIs, 15 steals, and an OPS of 0.675 in 129 games this year, with only 0.169 and 0.551 in August, respectively. In particular, he suffered a severe slump of one hit in 28 at-bats in the last 10 games since the match against the St. Louis Cardinals on the 16th. During this period, he struck out 11 times without a walk.

The defense is even worse. The OAA is ranked 21st out of 24 shortstops who qualify for the ranking with a -7 average-to-out index. Wolfie's OAA last year was 14. In other words, last year we processed 14 more outcounts than the average shortstop, but this year we processed 7 less. The more defensive opportunities OAA has, the higher the difficult batting out.

Perhaps for this reason, when he appears at the batter's box at Yankee Stadium's home game, boos often pour out. Of course, Coach Boone believes that Volpi is not conscious of the crowd and that the play is shrinking.




Boone said, `I think he's mentally very strong and he's got all the skills he needs to be a big leaguer in New York. He also has the ability to handle high expectations for a young big leaguerHe is responding well to the reaction around him. He is not a player who will be greatly affected by such boos. Volpi praised the young player who just silently does his job, has a strong sense of winning, and tries to find a higher level of consistency in attack."

Kim Ha-sung, who cannot give up the possibility of moving in the FA market due to the collapse of Yankees GG shortstop hitting and defense, had been healthy
Toronto Blue Jays Bobbi??is considered the biggest shortstop in the FA market this year. AP Yonhap News
Kim Ha-sung, who cannot give up the possibility of moving in the FA market due to the collapse of Yankees GG shortstop hitting and defense, had been healthy
Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Kim Ha-sung. AP Yonhap News
However, if Volpey's offense and defense ability does not improve, the Yankees are likely to recruit shortstop from the FA market at the end of this year. This is the Yankees who have looked into the offseason shortstop market for the past two to three years.

MLB.com reported on July 29 that this year's shortstop FA market is Toronto Blue Jays Bobbi??While evaluating as the biggest language, he predicted that Boston Red Sox Trevor Story and Tampa Bay Rays Kim Ha-sung could be in the spotlight if they opt out.

Then, will Kim Ha-sung be able to go to the Yankees. The chances are slim. It seems difficult for Kim Ha-sung, who is struggling with frequent injuries even after joining in July, to give up the player option that cost $16 million (about 22 billion won) next year. When Kim Ha-sung came to the FA market last winter, there were several reports that the Yankees were interested, but it was just a rumor. Unless it's a big shot, there's no way the Yankees would send a love call.





This article was translated by Naver AI translator.