Yankees recall Anthony Volpe from Triple-A after Caballero injury

The Yankees did not bring Anthony Volpe back to sit and wait. José Caballero’s fractured right middle finger forced New York to make a quick move, and Volpe was recalled from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to restore everyday stability on the infield after Caballero dove back into first base in the ninth inning of Sunday’s 4-3 loss to the Brewers in Milwaukee.

Caballero was placed on the 10-day injured list, but Aaron Boone suggested the stay could be brief. Boone said the fracture was small and that the tendon and ligaments were intact, which pointed to a minimum-length absence if the finger responds as expected. The Yankees are planning to have Volpe back in the lineup at shortstop regularly while Caballero is out, with Boone saying the club expected him to join the team for Tuesday’s game against the Orioles at Camden Yards.

The recall flipped a decision the Yankees made just last week, when they optioned Volpe to Triple-A after he finished a 20-day rehab assignment following left shoulder surgery on October 14, 2025. Volpe, who has been the Yankees’ starting shortstop since 2023, had spent most of 2025 playing through a partially torn labrum before the operation, then worked his way back through Double-A Somerset and Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. In 13 minor league games, he went 11-for-44, hit one home run, and posted a .624 OPS across 49 plate appearances. That line was not loud, but it was enough to show the shoulder had held up.

Caballero had earned the job Volpe lost. Before the demotion, he was batting .333 over his previous 16 games with three homers and five RBIs, and he was providing the kind of late-inning speed and defense that made him hard to take out of the lineup. He finished with 13 stolen bases in 41 games and led all major league shortstops with nine defensive runs saved at the time of the recall story. Aaron Judge called Volpe after the demotion and spoke with him for 30 to 40 minutes, a sign that New York still viewed him as more than a placeholder. Now the Yankees need him to act like the starter again, because the infield has already lost its margin for error.