NEW YORK -- The Yankees howled with laughter in their pre-series hitters’ meeting on Friday afternoon, a pandemic-era TikTok filling their screens instead of opponents’ sliders and curveballs. They delighted in the visual of a bearded college-aged Austin Wells busting dance moves in an Arizona parking lot.
Wells expressed astonishment that the video had not been found sooner, instead being unearthed this week by a fan and now rapidly gaining reposts across the globe. Whether it’s prancing in the desert or enjoying his first multihomer game in the Bronx, Wells continues to show the Yankees all he can do, leading the club to a 6-3 victory over the Cardinals at Yankee Stadium.
“A lot of laughs; definitely, a lot of laughs,” Wells said. “I was a little surprised to see that come up, but it’s all good. The only thing I can do is embrace it. I’m just glad it was a good thing and not a bad thing.”
After the video was watched and re-watched, teammate Anthony Volpe told Wells he needed to change his walkup music to the song, 2008’s “Shooting Stars” by the Bag Raiders, an Australian electronic duo. Wells shrugged; he’d been looking for a new tune anyway, and he instructed the Yankees’ scoreboard department to play it for his first two at-bats.
Wells homered his second time up, a two-run blast to right-center field that gave his club a two-run lead. Wells repeated the feat in the eighth inning, sans music, providing breathing room for closer Clay Holmes as the Yankees (79-56) built upon their American League-best record.
Wells tied his career high with four RBIs, and his 12 homers are the second most by a rookie Yankees catcher, behind Gary Sánchez’s 20 in 2016.
“He’s a catcher for the New York Yankees as a rookie, so there’s a lot that comes with that,” said Marcus Stroman, who tossed seven innings of two-run ball for his 10th win. “It’s not easy at all. I think he’s done an incredible job. We all love him in this clubhouse, and I think he’s only going to get better.”
Juan Soto, who contributed a game-tying double among two hits and picked up an outfield assist by throwing out Alec Burleson attempting to stretch a fifth-inning single, said that he has been “really excited” about Wells’ production hitting behind himself and Aaron Judge.
In 20 games as the Yanks’ cleanup hitter, Wells is batting .346 (28-for-81) with five homers and 21 RBIs.
“I feel like the at-bats he’s been taking lately, he’s been showing that he knows the strike zone pretty well,” Soto said. “He’s been swinging the bat well; he’s making good decisions. So I think that’s what you need behind a big bat like Judge, a guy who can try to make good decisions, get the knocks, get the hits and keep the line moving.”
Said Wells: “I’m having a lot of fun with it. I’m accepting it and embracing the challenge.”
The 3-for-35 start Wells endured early this season, one in which manager Aaron Boone repeatedly said that the backstop had hit into tough luck, has become a distant memory. In his past 30 games, Wells is slashing .327/.400/.561 with six homers and 22 RBIs, reaching base safely in all but three contests. Boone has said that he expects Wells to play more often than Jose Trevino, who will continue to start against lefties.
“The catching was ahead of where we expected last year, and at the start of this year, we were waiting on the bat to come,” Boone said. “It sure has. He puts together really good at-bats, and then he’s got that power in there. This is what we’ve seen from him for more than a couple of months now, just a real middle-of-the-order presence.”
That’s to say nothing of Wells’ dance moves, which Soto said he was also impressed by: “He made a great TikTok video. It was funny. I mean, he got everybody going. He got the vibes. What else can we ask for?”
The video is a time capsule of the COVID-19 shutdown; Wells’ season at the University of Arizona had been interrupted, and he was soon to be selected in the first round (28th overall) of a truncated MLB Draft. He’s seen in the passenger seat of a sedan, wearing a cutoff T-shirt showing Steve Carell’s character from “The Office.”
Wells said some yet-to-be-discovered TikToks show him voicing over Michael Scott speeches; good luck, Internet sleuths.
As Wells hops out, the vehicle rolls forward slowly, allowing the future big leaguer to show off fancy footwork as the music intensifies. There is sashaying and posing, and after 25 glorious seconds, Wells squats and begins to disappear from view. The sequence then repeats ad infinitum.
“Hey, I had moves back then,” Wells said, with a laugh. “Don’t put anything out there you don’t want people to see.”