This story was excerpted from Bryan Hoch’s Yankees Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
TAMPA, Fla. -- Austin Wells didn’t need the scouting reports to be sugarcoated. Advancing through the Yankees’ farm system, he kept hearing the same knocks: the bat might play at the higher levels, but the defense might not.
Wells didn’t push back -- he thought they might be right. So he changed the story.
“I think the measurable skills as a catcher, I was terrible,” Wells said. “Not good at framing, probably below-average blocking, OK throwing. Coming to the Yankees, their thing is framing – they’ve been the best in the league since 2019.
“So they were able to work with me a ton, building my framing and the one-knee-down setup into everything I am now.”
As Wells enters his second full season as the Yanks’ starting catcher, the 26-year-old has flipped what the organization -- and outside observers -- once projected about his defense.
Focusing intently on framing and glove speed, Wells has developed into one of the game’s top-rated receivers, especially at the bottom of the zone. He has recorded a Major League-best 19 framing runs there over the past two seasons.
“We’re always looking to do more,” Wells said. “I think my drive to be great at the position fueled me. Their accountability of always staying on me and pushing me to be better, that perfect combo has helped me to be better.”
Overall, Wells ranks third in catcher framing runs (23) over the past two seasons. He's gotten a 46.6% called-strike rate on non-swings in the shadow zone (within one baseball's width of the strike-zone borders), seventh best among qualifiers. Wells grades closer to the middle of the pack in blocking and throwing.
“It’s been by design, based on the guys we have and how we pitch down in the zone,” said catching coach Tanner Swanson. “It was an area we doubled down on. He trains very intentionally to that part of the strike zone and has made some minor mechanical adjustments to give himself more space to create speed.”
Swanson recalls an introductory Zoom call with Wells around the time of the 2018 MLB Draft, when the organization laid out concerns about his defense -- and a plan to improve. From that day forward, Swanson said, Wells was all in.
“One thing that has helped him separate is an ability to make adjustments fast,” Swanson said. “He’s capable of taking information even with minimal training. Some things, we train really hard and he’s able to apply it. Other stuff, it’s just conversations and he’s also able to integrate those things. The separator for him is his diligence in wanting to improve and change the narrative.”
Had Wells arrived as a defense-first backstop, manager Aaron Boone said they would likely be thrilled with his offensive output. Last season, he slashed .219/.275/.436 with 22 doubles, 21 homers and 71 RBIs in 126 games.
Boone said he believes there is more coming.
“He does have good at-bats in tough situations, but I expect a lot more out of him offensively, as does he,” Boone said. “Being a Major League catcher, especially as a rookie and a first- and second-year player, there’s a lot of things you’re focusing on away from your hitting. I still think there’s a lot more in there offensively.”
At times over the past several seasons, Wells has acknowledged difficulty separating his defense from his offense. It’s not uncommon for him to prepare for an at-bat while still thinking through a pitching plan. Wells believes flipping that switch represents his next level of development.
“I feel like I’ve shown what I’m capable of [offensively] in spurts, whether it was in ’24 or at times last year,” he said. “I know it’s in there. It’s just about keeping it consistent. That’s the next level for me, and I think that’ll help me give less at-bats away.”