The Somerset Patriots’ second home series will feature some MLB fanfare.
Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe is scheduled to begin a rehab assignment with Somerset, while Phillies right-hander Zack Wheeler will start on the mound for Reading in Tuesday’s 6:35 p.m. game at TD Bank Ballpark in Bridgewater.
Volpe has yet to play this season while recovering from surgery last October to repair a partially torn left labrum. Yankees general manager Brian Cashman told reporters that Volpe will need about 55 plate appearances before reclaiming his spot as the starting shortstop, so he will likely spend the entire week in Somerset (six games through Sunday), barring a setback.
It’s a homecoming for Volpe, who grew up nearby in Watchung and was drafted in the first round by the Yankees in 2019 out of Delbarton School in Morristown. He played 110 games at the Double-A level with the Patriots in 2022.
Volpe, who turns 25 on April 28, played in almost every game for the Yankees from 2023-25 but has struggled at the plate in the major leagues with a .222/.283/.379 line.
New York Yankees Anthony Volpe heads for first base after hitting an RBI single against the Boston Red Sox during the fourth inning of Game 3 of an American League wild-card baseball playoff series, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
Wheeler, meanwhile, is a 35-year-old veteran who has made three All-Star teams and finished runner-up for the NL Cy Young Award in 2024.
Wheeler hasn’t pitched in a major league game since last August because of thoracic outlet decompression surgery. This will be his fourth rehab outing after making three starts with Triple-A Lehigh Valley (38 pitches on March 28, 49 pitches on April 3 and 62 pitches on April 8).
Phillies manager Rob Thomson told reporters that Wheeler is on track to make his season debut during the team’s series in Atlanta from April 24-26. He is currently scheduled to pitch again for Reading in Somerset on Sunday, barring a setback on Tuesday.
The Trentonian will provide full coverage of Tuesday’s action online Tuesday night and in Thursday’s newspapers for Trenton and other daily locals.