Yankees keep getting better with Austin Wells batting cleanup
New York Yankees’ Austin Wells gestures on second base after his RBI double against the Kansas City Royals during the eighth inning of an MLB baseball game at Yankee Stadium on Monday, Sept. 8, 2024. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
In a Yankees lineup that boasts a pair of $300 million sluggers, and another on the brink of his own $500 million deal next year, is it possible that the true Bronx catalyst is a rookie catcher recently moved to the cleanup spot?
Put all that cash aside, and the numbers don’t lie when it comes to Austin Wells, who’s not only keeping pace with the pinstriped Goliaths, but is a big reason why these Yankees are becoming the most dangerous version of themselves, at the perfect time.
Since July 20, Wells has handled cleanup duties in 27 games, and is mopping up his peers around the league performance-wise. Among his fellow No. 4 hitters, trimmed to the 58 with a minimum of 100 plate appearances, Wells entered Tuesday night’s game ranked third with a .909 OPS and fourth in batting average at .303.
Overall, his 13 homers are the second-most by a Yankees rookie catcher to Gary Sanchez’s 20 in 2016 and his 3.7 WAR, as calculated by FanGraphs, was the fourth-best among MLB catchers, as well as tops among AL rookie position players. And with the speculation percolating about Wells’ Rookie of the Year chances, it wasn’t surprising to hear GM Brian Cashman conjure up another legendary Yankees backstop.
“Love the mustache,” Cashman told Newsday. “Makes me think of Thurman Munson. It’s certainly needed, and he is a force now — without a doubt.”
Munson, of course, was a Rookie of the Year himself in 1970 and later won the MVP in 1976. The captain was a pillar of that Yankees’ decade, helping the franchise restore its championship pedigree, and Wells — who just turned 25 in July — could be doing the same, starting with this season. It’s not too much of a stretch.
That’s exactly what Cashman envisioned when the Yankees made Wells their first-round pick (28th overall) in the 2020 draft, actually the second time they selected him — he was their 35th-rounder in 2018. It sounds crazy that Wells could wind up being the pivotal bat during the same year the Yankees traded for Juan Soto, but when manager Aaron Boone was desperate to find lineup protection for Aaron Judge, the team’s offensive profile dramatically changed with Wells’ switch to the cleanup spot in late July.
At first glance, Wells appeared to get off to a slow start in what was an eagerly anticipated season for him. Through the first three months, Wells was hitting just .214 with a .650 OPS, but another stat was more telling. His BABIP — or batting average on balls in play — sat at just .240, which put him in the bottom 10% of the majors. The Yankees believed in Wells consistently making solid contact, and before long, they knew he’d be rewarded.
“He was just unlucky,” Cashman said. “He was hitting the ball hard and getting nothing to show for it. To the point where people pointed out to him, hey man, just keep doing what you’re doing. The market correction is coming, because you’re doing everything right. And the market correction has come.”
If Wells got frustrated, it didn’t show. And he plowed through those difficult months to ultimately become a trigger for the Yankees’ offense, not to mention keeping his head behind the plate to be a trusted sherpa for the pitching staff.
“I think it’s easy to get more confidence when you’re having results,” Wells said. “Gradually, as the season went on, I got more and more. But I also think from the beginning of the year that I was confident in my ability.”
The Yankees knew that about Wells, too. His progress wasn’t going to be derailed by the early subpar numbers. And the way he’s seamlessly fit into this clubhouse, the projections across the board were on target.
“His makeup is off the charts,” Cashman said. “When he got through our system, that’s all you kept hearing about from every team he played with — the impact of his leadership, and performance, on everybody else around him. He’s the type that makes people around him better because of how he goes about his business.”
Also on the money. Not only are the Yankees 17-10 with Wells hitting cleanup, they’re crushing it overall in the 45 games since he began spending the majority of his time there, ranking second in the majors in OPS (.804) and home runs (75) during that span. The Diamondbacks lead both categories (.843 OPS, 81 HRs).
Wells is the focal point lately, but his “electric bat” — as Carlos Rodon described it — has sparked the rest of the lineup. Gleyber Torres is rounding into the leadoff hitter the Yankees have searched for since spring training, and the deadline addition of Jazz Chisholm Jr., along with the recent reunions with Anthony Rizzo and Jasson Dominguez, have added much needed length to Boone’s batting order. As a result, it’s not a stretch to suggest this is the best version of the Yankees’ lineup we’ve witnessed all season.
“I think it has a chance to be that way,” Boone said. “I like our balance. We now have a few legit speed guys, obviously the power . . . but we’ve got to go out now and still perform.”
So far, that hasn’t been a problem, as the Yankees can never go to Wells too often.
David Lennon is an award-winning columnist, a voter for baseball's Hall of Fame and has covered six no-hitters, including two perfect games.
