Wells calls playing third 'fun moment'

DENVER -- The morning after he played third base for the very first time, Vernon Wells was still relishing the experience.

"I had a blast," he said. "It was like being a kid again, playing a new position. Especially in a critical situation, the best closer in the world on the mound."

Before Mariano Rivera took the mound to pitch the bottom of the ninth on Wednesday, Wells was warming up, fielding ground balls from first baseman Lyle Overbay, who said it "felt like batting practice."

That's because Wells, an outfielder, occasionally takes ground balls during batting practice to keep his hands loose and makes throws to first base.

"There's been a couple times where I've been there, and he's throwing them," Overbay said. "I just laugh, thinking I'd say it's 99.9 percent sure that'll never happen, he's just having fun. You think you've seen it all."

Wells said he heard from a host of players, including pitcher Dan Haren, a teammate when both he and Wells played with the Angels.

Haren sent a text with a picture of the recorded play-by-play of the bottom of the ninth, showing that Carlos Gonzalez grounded to Wells at third base.

"I was near the top throwing to Lyle Overbay, which obviously doesn't look right," Wells said. "It was a fun moment, that's for sure."