As Anthony Volpe Approaches His Season Debut, José Caballero Is Finding His Groove

NEW YORK — For Jose Caballero, coming through in clutch situations is normal. It’s what he has expected of himself since he grew up playing baseball in Panama. So, all these years later, three years to the day since he made his Major League Baseball debut, nothing has changed. The stakes are higher, with Caballero taking charge as the starting shortstop for the New York Yankees. But his mentality is always the same. "I like the pressure," Caballero told me on Wednesday in the Yankees clubhouse after he seized yet another opportunity at the plate. "I like the big moments. I like to contribute to the team. And I did it." Two days after scoring the deciding run in a thrilling come-from-behind win, Caballero again was at the center of it all, delivering a two-run walk-off double off Angels closer Jordan Romano, leading to a 5-4 win on Wednesday in the Bronx. Caballero is getting an extended runway as the starting shortstop while Anthony Volpe continues to work his way back from an offseason shoulder surgery. But, the way he’s been hitting lately, there should be no question about his playing time. Caballero battled against Romano, eyeing a couple of sliders before connecting on the third and lacing it to center field. The crowd was trying to match Yankee Stadium’s loud sound system, but for Caballero, the world seemed to quiet around him. The 29-year-old was locked in, patiently waiting to do damage on an offspeed pitch in the zone. Nearly an hour after the final out, long after he received an ice-cooler bath on the field, Caballero didn’t even realize reporters were waiting to talk to him. He sat in his chair in front of his locker for several minutes, decompressing after the adrenaline rush of hitting the game-winning hit. The Yankees electric infielder didn’t seem to understand that what he did was special and worth unpacking. For him, it’s the standard. "I’m living for those at-bats," Caballero said. "I want those at-bats every time I step into the box. It’s the at-bat that the team needs, and it’s the at-bat that I really want." Even as "it’s not easy" for the Yankees right now, as manager Aaron Boone said, Caballero’s unshakeable confidence is exactly what the team needs. The Yankees have lost seven of their last nine games, and eight of their last 11. Their series against the Angels was a seesaw, highlighted by Aaron Judge and Mike Trout trading home runs throughout the four-game set. Trout launched five home runs, while Judge went yard four times. Two future first-ballot Hall of Famers one-upping each other wasn’t enough to cover up some of the Bombers’ weaknesses. Yankees pitchers combined to cough up 32 runs in the Angels series, with 21 of those coming on home runs. Caballero, meanwhile, has turned it on after a slow start. He’s hitting .348 (8-for-23) in his last six games, with the majority of his at-bats coming from the eight-hole. "He loves the action," Boone said. "And he’s really confident. That’s one of his biggest strengths. He thinks he’s the best player on the field. And that’s an important thing to have and play the game with. It does seem like the bigger the stakes, the more he’s able to dig in." If Caballero keeps hitting like this, his recent resurgence just might force the Yankees to make a somewhat difficult decision because … Volpe Is Closing In On His Season Debut The shortstop played in a baseball game on Tuesday for the first time since his October surgery to repair a torn labrum. Volpe, who went 0-for-2 in a minor-league game against the rehabbing Zack Wheeler, is continuing to ramp up with the Double-A Somerset Patriots for now. He’s expected to build up his at-bats and test his shoulder throughout the next week in the minor leagues. Volpe will play in back-to-back games on Thursday and Friday, rest on Saturday, and play again on Sunday. He’s viewing this workload build-up as an opportunity to assess how comfortable his shoulder feels while diving for plays in the dirt, stealing bases and throwing to first. "I wish I could play more to test it more, but it felt amazing," Volpe said this week while joining the Yankees on an off-day in his rehab schedule. "I’m not thinking about testing it, but then after the fact, you think about how it felt. And it just feels normal." Volpe feeling normal will help the Yankees evaluate whether he can be an impactful hitter in the Bronx. The team has maintained that his season was derailed due to his shoulder injury last year, when he slashed a mediocre line of 212/.272/.391 in 153 games. As much as the Yankees will argue that Volpe is capable of being better than that, his 82 OPS+ in 2025 was nearly identical to his production in 2024 (86 OPS+) and 2023 (81 OPS+). Boone announced last weekend in Tampa, Fla. that when Volpe returns from rehab, he will be the Yankees starting shortstop. But at that time, Caballero was ice-cold at the plate. Now, he’s actually making it a tougher debate. Still, there’s no question the Yankees need more pop from the left side of the infield. The .529 OPS from their shortstops is ranked 27th in MLB, and the .607 OPS from their third basemen is ranked 20th. That's part of why Volpe will receive every opportunity to get settled in at the plate this season. The Yankees have an influx of infielders on the roster, and someone between Amed Rosario, Ryan McMahon, and Caballero is likely to be the odd-man out after Volpe returns. Deesha Thosar covers Major League Baseball as a reporter and columnist for FOX Sports. She previously covered the Mets as a beat reporter for the New York Daily News. The daughter of Indian immigrants, Deesha grew up on Long Island and now lives in Queens. Follow her on Twitter at @DeeshaThosar.