Earlier this season, the Yankees appeared to have the front-runner for AL Rookie of the Year in Luis Gil.
With the race heading into the final stages, Austin Wells is making a strong case for taking home the prize himself.
As the Yankees focus on bigger goals this month, such as winning the AL East, Wells' two-way power and emergence as a cleanup hitter could play a key role in the team's success, including a shot at winning the AL Rookie of the Year award.
“That's true,” fellow catcher Jose Trevino said Tuesday, “he's done a great job both defensively and defensively, which I think is very important and I think he's underrated, especially as a catcher, what he's doing right now. I don't think he gets a lot of attention, but he should definitely be in the Rookie of the Year conversation.”
As of Tuesday, Wells led all AL rookies with an fWAR of 3.7, ahead of Orioles outfielder Colton Cousar (3.4) and Red Sox outfielders Willy Abreu (3.0) and Gill (2.5).
In his first 100 games, Wells was hitting .252 with a .780 OPS and 13 home runs, but in his last 64 games (51 starts) since June 6, he's hitting .284 with a .890 OPS and 12 home runs. Over the past three months, those numbers have improved.
Wells' batting success isn't necessarily a surprise — it's been expected ever since the Yankees selected him in the first round in 2020.
But the 25-year-old has made big strides defensively this season, ranking third in Baseball Savant's catcher framing runs as of Tuesday and fourth in fielding run value, which takes into account throwing, blocking and framing.
“This is his first year really playing in the major leagues and what he's doing is great, leading a pitching staff that's probably very much in demand with what they want to do, but other than that he's just focused on helping the team and winning games with his offense,” Nestor Cortes said.
“His pitch calling was really good as well. I think a catcher has only one job, which is to lead the game. If you're going to get a hit, you're going to get a hit. So for him to do both of those things really well, and from April through September, I thought his pitch calling and leadership behind the catcher for pitchers to trust him and follow him was really good.”
Cortes said he and Wells had recently joked that if Wells could hit five or six more home runs in the first month or two of this season (he had just one through the end of May), he'd be a sure thing for the AL Rookie of the Year award.
But Wells has stepped into the catcher role and has redeemed himself from a quiet start, consistently putting up quality at-bats and producing big moments like a three-run homer in the bottom of the seventh inning that led the Yankees to a win over the Royals on Monday.
Gill is expected to bring a 3.24 ERA to Wednesday's start, having struck out 151 batters in 130 2/3 innings and allowing three runs or fewer in 20 of 25 appearances.
The same goes for Cowser, who has been in decline recently but was batting .241 with a .759 OPS and 20 homers in 137 games as of Tuesday, and Abreu, who was batting .267 with an .830 OPS in 114 games.
But Wells' value at a tough position — no catcher has won Rookie of the Year since the Giants' Buster Posey in 2010 — also includes providing a steady presence behind the catcher while guiding a veteran pitching staff and earning their trust throughout the year.
The Yankees value the defense and game calling that a catcher provides, so his offensive influence is an added bonus.
“It's a big responsibility to be a major league catcher, especially when you're a major league catcher for the New York Yankees,” manager Aaron Boone said, “and he's handled it all really well and shown that ability from the get-go. Now we're really seeing him start to step up offensively as well.”
