The Yankees lost 1-0 to the A's in The Bronx on Thursday, and Austin Wells ended their best rally of the night by flying out in the seventh inning. It was another quiet result for the young catcher, who has gone 3-for-27 since Opening Day.
Wells' early-season line includes two singles, one double, four walks and 11 strikeouts, a start that has left him searching for the damage he is used to doing. He said after the game, “I feel pretty good [at the plate],” and added, “Swinging at the right pitches. I’m just not getting much results. So, keep going.”
The game came roughly 7 percent of the way into the Yankees' season, so the numbers are still small. Wells opened the year with two hits on Opening Day, but the early slump has been enough to stand out because the Yankees are otherwise winning and because the bottom of the lineup has already been marked as an early issue.
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Aaron Boone still sees enough in the at-bats to believe the tide can turn. “A little better, actually. He’s been one of those guys struggling a little bit,” Boone said. “The last AB there, where we had a couple runners on, I thought he put together a pretty good at-bat and got some good swings off.” He added, “I feel like there’s been some games where he’s had some quality at-bats,” but said the team needs that to become more consistent.
That matters because Wells was arriving in the majors a couple of years ago with a reputation as a strong hitter who needed to sharpen his defense behind the plate. He has since emerged as an excellent framer and game-caller, and the Yankees say those skills have been a major part of their rotation's strong start. His bat, though, has only flashed the kind of hitter the club thinks he can become.
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The Yankees also have other catching options in the organization, including J.C. Escarra and Ben Rice, who the club says could be a major league catcher. For now, Wells remains the one most closely watched, because the Yankees need his offense to catch up with the rest of his game.
