Austin Wells was an outfielder when he first started playing baseball as a child. He hated it.
There was little action that far away from the plate so he kept himself occupied by picking grass, daydreaming and paying no attention to the game. His dad, Greg, a former baseball player at the University of Arizona, wanted his son to fall in love with the game he loved and thought maybe if the child played a position that required 100 percent engagement his feelings about the sport would change. So Greg bought catcher’s gear and stuck his son behind the plate. Austin loved it.
MLB Pipeline now rates Wells as the Yankees’ No. 4 prospect and the best catcher in the farm system, but there’s significant external doubt that he will stick with the position that has become his identity when he makes it to the major leagues. The Athletic‘s Keith Law wrote Wells “can not catch at all” and “amateur scouts were nearly unanimous in agreeing he wasn’t going to remain a catcher.” Another report says “few scouts outside of the organization believe he’ll be a long-term catcher,” and a different evaluator says“I like Austin Wells’ bat, he can’t catch.”
“It’s basically been that (way) since before I got drafted,” Wells said of his doubts. “There’s always been that doubt and there’s still that doubt. I feel like continuing to prove that I can play the position at a higher level is the goal, and not necessarily because of what other people say but because I want to be the catcher of the New York Yankees. I want to be an All-Star catcher. I want to be known for not just being able to hit. I want to do both, and I want to do both extremely well. The more that people say I can’t, it definitely fires me up to work harder and be in a better spot each day.”
Wells said the Yankees have only discussed his future behind the plate. No conversations have taken place regarding a potential position change. Since he was drafted, he’s played 135 games at catcher and 27 games as the designated hitter. Catching is Wells’ preference, although he did say if a future position change meant helping the Yankees win a World Series, then he’s all for it and it won’t be an issue.
Wells had promising results this season in the minors. His defensive metrics from 2021, his first season in the Yankees organization, to 2022 show improvement behind the plate. Wells’ caught stealing percentage jumped from 13 percent in 2021 to 25 percent in 2022. His passed balls dropped from 16 to 4 this season. His framing runs above average went from 2.6 to 9.4 in 2022. Wells credits his development to working with both Aaron Gershenfeld, the Yankees’ minor-league defensive coordinator, and defensive coach Aaron Bossi, who have helped him become better at blocking, receiving and improving his release. The positive metrics have only strengthened Wells’ desire to prove to everyone that he belongs behind the plate.
“Being a catcher is a priority because I love the grind of the position,” Wells said. “Getting beat up and coming back the next day and going out there like nothing happened the night before — I love that and it drives me to play the game of baseball, because being back there is a different feeling.
“Arguably the highest priority of my game is to be a catcher.”
Less than 48 hours from when the Yankees selected Wells with the No. 28 pick in the 2020 draft out of Arizona, he was on a video call with Gershenfeld wanting as much detail as he could soak up on how he can become a more complete player. His bat has never been in question; he finished 2022 with 20 home runs, an OPS of .897 and has never had lower than a 129 wRC+ any stop in the minors. The major-league wRC+ average for all catchers in 2022 was 89. His chase rate of 16.6 percent would have ranked second in the majors this season behind Max Muncy.
The future of MLB likely features an automatic strike zone, which will put less emphasis on framing. Both Jose Trevino’s and Kyle Higashioka’s value to the Yankees is largely tied to how well they frame pitches. With bigger bases coming this season, throwing out runners at high rates will be important for catchers because the league expects stolen base attempts to rise. With what Wells showed in 2022 at High A and Double A, the Yankees are encouraged by his progress and believe he’ll be ready to catch when his time comes.
“He’s produced at above-average rates from a receiving standpoint and he’s made significant improvements as a thrower, so holistically you’re looking at a guy who, from a tangible skill set, that has really grown in all three important areas,” Gershenfeld she said.
“What we’ve seen so far from Austin as a catcher is really, really encouraging. I think we’ve seen some production on the catching end that certainly forecasts success later on. And we’ve been, we’ve been pretty clear with Austin that we believe he’s a catcher and he wants to be a catcher. And so we’ve kind of been on that path to help him become the very best catcher he can be.”
The Yankees have not told Wells where he’ll report just yet for the 2023 season, but it’s likely he’ll start the year in Triple A after a successful year in Double A where he helped Somerset win a title. If the bat continues to be as impressive as it’s been and he’s still showing signs of improvement behind the plate, it’s possible he could be a late call-up this season. The Yankees need more left-handed hitting, and Wells provides that, even if he does have to play a different position such as first base or left field. In college, Wells played some first base and every outfield position, so it won’t be totally new for him.
Shortly after the Yankees drafted Wells, the social media team sent him an edited video of himself hitting homers into the short porch at Yankee Stadium with the crowd going wild. Since then, he’s envisioned what it’ll be like when he has the opportunity to experience the real thing. But when he puts on the pinstripes for the first time, he also hopes to be putting on his catcher’s helmet and chest protector, too.
“I want to build off of the last two seasons and really show people that I am a catcher and have no plans of changing that or moving anywhere else,” Wells said. “I plan on debuting as a catcher and staying there. Going into this year, I have a chance of kind of solidifying myself in that spot. And I’m looking forward to doing that.”
(Photo and video courtesy of the Somerset Patriots)
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