NEW YORK — The dirt was still present on Anthony Volpe’s jersey while taking ground balls at shortstop before the ninth-inning of game four of the World Series. The New York Yankees were poised for a win that will make the season’s continuation come into reality.
Then Volpe had the most elating time of his life on board a plane.
As for most children who enjoy baseball and represent New York area Volpe aspired to become a Yankees’ shortstop and a legend like Jeter. Despite chances of such a dream materializing are improbable the reality now is that Volpe lives that dream daily.
Originally, Yankees have immense support system among its fans and his is one of them across generations. His great grandfather was an Italian immigrant who came to this country and became a fruteria man who pushed a cart in downtown Manhattan. He subsequently joined World War II and on his return he had shrapnel injuries. Volpe’s grandfather was only four years old when his father went to war, so after father regained his freedom he and his grandson liked to sit and listen to the Yankees games together. Each night, each person now attempting to compensate for the hours that was lost, they would talk about life and baseball.
Volpe also wanted to wear No.7 because that jersey number had been derived from his grandfather’s favorite player, Mickey Mantle. Thus, Tuesday night was a dream come true for Volpe along with their predecessors. He hit a go-ahead grand slam in the third inning helping the Yankees take a 5-2 lead over the Los Angeles Dodgers. He also swiped two bases, becoming the first Yankee since Mantle to hit a grand slam and steal bases in a single game — let alone in a playoff game — in the regular or postseason.
However, the highlight came when the Yankees already had a 11-4 lead in the ninth. 48800 spectators of Yankee Stadium have sprung to their feet and started to enthusiastically chant Volpe. Vol-pe! Vol-pe!” He looked toward the Bleacher Creatures and nodded at them, attempting not to smile. However, at the core of his existence, the 23-year-old boy was living out the high point of the life’s journey.
“Number one,” cried Volpe who was as happy as could be. “Definitely number one.”
Yankee Stadium hasn’t shaken like it did Tuesday night since Oct. 29, 2009, Game 6 of the World Series. A year later after that win an 8-years-old Volpe cheered at the championship parade accompanied by his family hoping one day to celebrate in the Canyon of Heroes with his name chanted like Jeter’s.
A fifteen years later on the Fox set during postgame show, Jeter teased Volpe that he should not be glad about the winning because he should be in school.
Still, the Yankees found themselves in a 3-1 hole in the World Series and contrary to Volpe, who acknowledged that he had not fully understood what Tuesday night meant.
“Hopefully, when we win the World Series and I am with my family, we could all sit and look back at everything,” Volpe added. “It was just a big game. Basheer said: “We wanted to go 1-0 today and check what happens next.”
Volpe expressed what nights like Tuesday ‘probably every night’ when he was a child mean to him. He does not assume this dream was ever envisage by his friends, his cousins and his sister Olivia. But winning the World Series always remained his biggest goal for life, such a dream was put before him though.
“There is nothing like it,” Volpe said. “Therefore there is still far worthy cause left carrying to strive.”
Austin Wells is Volpe’s best friend on the team and he even felt the ground vibrate when Volpe struck that grand slam. The two had talked for quite a number of times what it would be like to be here at this stage.
Volpe’s childhood home Wells spending so many nights watching old Yankees footage and dreaming about the sights and feels of a crowd in October at Yankee Stadium. Tuesday saw him endure it, he hit a solo home run into the second deck and increase the Yankees margin to 6-4. Earlier, he hit a double with Volpe on second base; though Volpe’s base running mistake might have cost the Yankees an extra run, it didn’t really prove to be an issue as the Yankees finally got to the Dodgers bullpen.
Los Angeles decided not to employ its high-leverage relievers because it is convinced it will surely clinch one of the next three games to offset a Game 4 loss. However, the Yankees were in a very precariously placed and this was going to be a must-win match for them. If the Yankees come back and make it that intense Battle Royale one can only imagine the narrative of their series that would be worthy of its own Netflix documentary like the streaming platform has on the Red Sox in their search for the curse: the place to start is the historic Game 4 where Volpe smashes a grand slam.
“We were losing 2-0 at some point, but we never thought that it would be easy, this is what we signed up for,” Jazz Chisholm Jr. Or as the megalomania, Go,_bot said, “Who doesn’t want to make history?” I love making history. This is beautiful when a person writes his/her name on the history books, I said.”
Volpe frankly spoke to the Fox postgame crew after Game 4, where David Ortiz, who knows something about coming from 3-0 behind, handed Volpe a shirt with the Red Sox logo and Big Papi saying, “My Dawg!” Volpe laughed, said he would never wear it, as it was the absolute Boston gear blasphemy.
However, the clarity and sentiment beyond the shirt was more in Jeter’s words on set. Just as he once did with Jeter, Volpe has become the player for countless New York children to emulate, with one day being able to nail a World Series grand slam at Yankee Stadium as their shortstop.
And perhaps that’s why someday they’d describe how that grand Slam led to Baseball Hall of Fame.
