It remains to be seen whether Anthony Volpe will make the New York Yankees Opening Day roster and if he'll be the team's starting shortstop.
If either of those possibilities becomes a reality, the top prospect will join a very exclusive club.
in case you were starting to get curious...
— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) March 24, 2023
Anthony Volpe will be 21 years & 336 days old on Opening Day
the last Yankees player that young to start on Opening Day:
1996 Derek Jeter, at 21 years & 281 days old
if you were starting to get curious...
— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) March 24, 2023
Anthony Volpe will be 21 years & 336 days old on Opening Day
only 3 Yankees have made their MLB debuts ON Opening Day at age 21 or younger:
1951 Mickey Mantle: 19 y, 179 d
1930 Ben Chapman: 21 y, 111 d
1932 Frankie Crosetti: 21 y, 191 d
Volpe continues to make a good case for the starting job, as he hit his third home run of spring training on Friday.
Anthony Volpe making a statement in the battle for the starting @Yankees shortstop job! pic.twitter.com/dNVmVXnyP8
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) March 24, 2023
Jeter and Mantle never looked back after making their first Opening Day starts on their way to Hall of Fame careers, while Chapman had a great start to his MLB playing days with four straight All-Star nods from 1933 to 1936, before fizzling out a bit in the second half of his career. Crosetti enjoyed a solid 17-season MLB run (all with the Yankees) with a pair of All-Star honors and seven World Series titles.
It was reported last week that Volpe was "definitely in the mix" to make the team's Opening Day roster. Entering Friday, he had gone 12-for-43 with five doubles, nine runs scored and five stolen bases in spring training.
The Yankees open their 2023 regular season at 1:05 p.m. ET on Thursday at home against the San Francisco Giants.
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