World Series 2024: Anthony Volpe creates an unforgettable October moment, revitalizing the Yankees, the home crowd and the series

NEW YORK (AP) — Anthony Volpe never saw Derek Jeter hit a World Series home run.

At least he has no real memory of such things.

Jeter, the legendary Yankee known as Mr. October, went for yardage three times in the Fall Classic. Two came in 2000, before Volpe existed on this earthly plane. And the other, Jeter's iconic walk-off in Game 4 of the 2001 World Series, came when the current Yankees shortstop was 176 days old.

But for Volpe, a lifelong Yankees fan who was born in New York and raised in New Jersey, these are the moments feel like memories.

And with his boyhood idol – the idol of so many baseball lovers of a certain age – in the building for Game 4 of that World Series, Volpe provided an unforgettable postseason highlight with his team's 11-4 victory. In one fell swoop, the boy who filled his childhood bedroom with all things Yankee realized his wildest dream while keeping his team's season alive.

With the bases empty in the bottom of the third inning and the hosts down a run, Volpe threw a first-pitch slider from Dodgers reliever Daniel Hudson into the left-field stands, resulting in a game-changing, energy-altering and possibly Series-changing game led to Grand Slam. The crowd, which had had no reason to cheer for the first 11.5 Fall Classic innings they saw, exploded.

“It felt like the fans were so ready to erupt last night,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said after the game. “And we just fell behind and couldn’t break through. It’s like finally being able to see the tip bounce off Yankee Stadium in a World Series game.”

Volpe also blew up.

As the ball flew over the wall, the baby-faced 23-year-old let out a cathartic roar. When he reached home plate, a trio of teammates were waiting for him with smiles on their faces. Again, understandably, Volpe couldn't stop screaming. He had given the Yankees, who were down 3-0 in the series, a 5-2 lead – their first lead in the series since Freddie Freeman left Game 1 with a grand slam.

“I think I pretty much fainted as soon as I saw it go over the fence,” Volpe, who attended the 2009 World Series parade with his family as a midget, revealed in his postgame media conference.

Most importantly, Volpe gave the team, the audience, and the entire series a much-needed boost.

Considered a classic between the sport's two biggest giants, this championship showdown appeared to be in serious danger of stalling before it could even catch fire. Game 1 was a slow-burner, but the Dodgers' comfortable victories in Games 2 and 3 left the Yankees with a historic task never accomplished: come back from a 3-0 deficit in the World Series. It felt both imposing and improbable. As a result, the energy around Yankee Stadium was noticeably more subdued ahead of Game 4 on Tuesday. Before the first pitch, fewer people crowded into the hall in front of the court. Ticket prices had fallen sharply. Hope was somewhere else, already enjoying the vacation.

But Volpe gave his Yankees fans a reason to believe.

“Tonight it was important to get an early lead,” said catcher Austin Wells, who hit a home run of his own in the sixth inning. “And (Volpe) gave us that with that one hit, and that was huge.”

It was easily the biggest Yankees swing of this World Series — and the biggest moment of the young shortstop's career.

After being promoted to the big league team out of spring training last year as a 21-year-old, Volpe started 308 games in 2023 and 2024, the third-most games ever started by a player in his first two MLB seasons. The two players ahead of him on this list are Hideki Matsui, who debuted in the United States as a 29-year-old and had extensive pro ball experience in Japan, and Albert Pujols. It shows how much this franchise has relied on this player and what the Yankees think about his chances of becoming a cornerstone prospect. Because while Volpe provided defensive stability at the most important infield position, his offensive game was more focused on what-ifs than what-is.

A single shot in late October alone won't turn Volpe into a dynamic offensive player. A combination of work, patience, good coaching, experience and physical maturity could ultimately help Volpe reach his performance ceiling. He's still only 23; there is enough time. And Jeter's shadow is unfair but inevitable. But Volpe's massive, energy-altering punch on Tuesday was a perfect reminder that this kid may still have magic in his bones.

“We've seen it all the time, even last year as a rookie — he's a Yankee through and through,” Yankees captain Aaron Judge told Yahoo Sports.

“It’s in his blood,” added outfielder Alex Verdugo.

The Volpe family's Yankees fan base goes back generations, to when Anthony's great-grandfather returned from World War II and bonded with his son by listening to Yankees games together on the radio. This love was then passed on to Anthony's father Michael and to Anthony himself.

“It's pretty crazy to think about it,” the Game 4 hero admitted when asked how it felt to realize his dream. “It's my dream, but it was all my friends' dreams, all my cousins' dreams, probably my sister's dream too.”

In the end, Volpe's momentum could end up as a blip in a Dodgers landslide, a footnote overshadowed by royal blue confetti. The odds for the Yankees remain tremendous. But even if the Yankees don't do the impossible and defeat the Dodgers, Volpe's swing should stand the test of time.

It's too good a story not to.