SAN FRANCISCO — There was a lot of family reunion going on in San Diego last weekend when the Yankees visited the Padres for the first time since Juan Soto’s blockbuster.
Soto, Michael King, Trent Grisham, Kyle Higashioka, Wandy Peralta, Tyler Wade and Johnny Brito were among those who met with their former teammates, and hugs were exchanged in abundance.
But early Friday afternoon before the series began, Higashioka and Austin Wells were catching up on the field at an empty Petco Park.
From the outside, the relationship seemed awkward.
Wells was promoted to the Yankees’ top catcher prospect last September and was largely expected to replace veteran Higashioka and pair with Jose Trevino as the team’s starting catching duo in 2024.
Higashioka still had a year left on his contract, but he was wise enough to look at the bigger picture.
“I think I had a few early warning signs at the end of last season,” Higashioka said Saturday inside the Padres clubhouse. “I think I was a little bit more prepared mentally than some of the other guys. [in the trade]That being said, it’s always hard to leave a group of friends you’ve known for a long time.
“But at the same time, you’re not going to play forever. You either retire at some point or move on to another team, or move on to another team multiple times. It’s just part of the game. I have a chance to play for a team and I’ve got to make the most of it.”
But before the Yankees released him, Higashioka did what he does best: give back by helping rookies trying to make it to the big leagues.
“It’s definitely a situation that can be looked at negatively,” Wells said Wednesday, “but he’s always been positive with me and I really appreciate that because I don’t think there are a lot of guys that can steer you in the right direction as you’re growing up, and he was one of those guys. So I’m really grateful that he’s been positive with me and has been that way for a long time.”
Those who have been around Higashioka for a long time were not surprised by how he handled the situation.
“It was expected,” Yankees director of catching Tanner Swanson said. “I’ve spent a lot of time with Kyle and I think that’s typical of him. I think he accepted the situation at the end of last year as well as he could. Even though his minutes were limited a little bit and his role changed a little bit, he was the same guy in the clubhouse every day and was eager to give back in some way to an organization that he probably felt had done so much for him over a long period of time.”
Higashioka was an elder statesman with the franchise. The Yankees drafted him out of high school in 2008. He played nine seasons in the minor leagues, appearing in 88 games at High-A in 2015 as a 25-year-old. He then made his MLB debut in 2017, returned to Triple-A for most of his time in 2018 and 2019, and was promoted outright in 2020.
So it was Higashioka’s advice that made the biggest impression on Wells.
“Keep trying,” Wells said.
Higashioka calls Wells and Trevino “two of my good friends” and keeps in touch with them, and they treat him the same way.
“Higgy was one of my good friends last year and someone who definitely helped me adjust to major league life,” Wells said. “It’s important to me to be able to stay in contact with someone like him who’s been so good to me. I was very happy that he got the opportunity to go and play in San Diego, but of course we would all love for him to still be around. It’s always good to talk to him from time to time and get a different perspective every now and then.”
Wells is off to a strong start in his first full major league season, and although he’s had some misfortune at the plate (.202 batting average, one home run in 94 at-bats), he continues to improve and is one of the top 11 pitch framers in baseball (per Baseball Savant). Catcher Framing Run) are Trevino (5 times, 1st), Wells (2 times, tied for 7th), and Higashioka (1 time, tied for 11th).
Trevino has been laying the groundwork for a bounce-back season over the first two months (.269 batting average, .735 OPS, career bests) after his 2023 season was ended in July due to wrist surgery.
After Trevino was injured, Higashioka got more playing time until September when Wells was promoted, and Ben Rotvedt also became Gerrit Cole’s starting catcher in Trevino’s absence.
When asked about “signs,” Higashioka pointed to the Yankees’ deep arsenal of catchers with Wells, Trevino and Rotvedt (who was eventually traded to the Rays) and the addition of minor leaguers Carlos Narvaez and Agustin Ramirez to the 40-man roster in November.
“They weren’t playing at the end of the year, even though they were doing well enough to stay on the field,” Higashioka said. “It seemed like they wanted to go in a different direction, but that’s baseball.”
However, Higashioka handled it so professionally that no one was surprised.
“I don’t think this is a surprise to anybody in the clubhouse,” Swanson said. “He’s as unselfish a guy as you can be. He cares about winning as much as you can. Even if it affected his own situation negatively, he took it in stride and did everything he could to impact the team and get better every day. That’s just who he is.”
And as far as landing spots go, Higashioka’s no problem: The 34-year-old is now playing about an hour and a half drive from where he grew up, right where he has a beach to satisfy his surfing passion (which may be more of an off-season activity).
“It’s great to be a little closer to home,” Higashioka said. “My family is happy because they get to see me all the time.”
Why depth matters
When Jon Berti took a step off the plate Friday night and fell to the ground as if he’d been shot, there was immediate fear in the Yankees dugout, including from Aaron Boone, that he’d torn his Achilles tendon.
Berti was sure that wasn’t the case, as she knew the pain was located in her upper calf.
“But that’s what everyone else thought at first,” Berti said this week, “and then I watched the video back and it certainly looked like it. And we were really lucky that it wasn’t and it was just a calf.”
While a torn Achilles tendon was potentially season-ending, Berti’s severe calf sprain is expected to sideline him for six to eight weeks. Berti has been moving around in a walking boot this week and received a PRP injection on Tuesday to help his recovery.
The timing was tough for Berti, who was batting .306 with a .748 OPS and four stolen bases in 11 games since returning from a groin strain earlier this season, and the Yankees were counting on Berti to be a key backup even with DJ LeMahieu returning this week.
“I was feeling good and contributing to the team,” Berti said. “The team is doing well and it’s fun to be a part of it, so when something like this happens, it’s obviously frustrating. I let the frustration get the better of me for a few days, but now it’s my job to get healthy as quickly as possible and help the team win.”
Berti’s injury paves the way for Jamai Jones to remain on the roster, as was expected following LeMahieu’s departure, just as Michael Tonkin was initially expected to be sidelined when Tommy Kahnle returned but multiple injuries to the bullpen delayed his stay.
Similarly, the news Thursday that Clarke Schmidt will be out for at least the next two months with a lat muscle injury backed up manager Boone’s repeated assertion that he hadn’t thought about who might be left out of the Yankees’ starting rotation when Cole returns (likely in late June or early July).
The Yankees wish they had been forced to make that decision, because it would have allowed Schmidt and all four other members of the starting rotation to stay healthy and Cole to complete his rehab assignment without issue.
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Revealing the numbers
The collection became bigger and more complete this week when Major League Baseball officially added Negro League statistics to its records.
Boone, a baseball lifer, is also a fan of the move.
“Hopefully, this will be an opportunity to learn more about Cool Papa Bell and the greats of the Negro Leagues, but I’d love to know more than that,” Boone said. “I can rattle off six, eight, 10, 12 names that you’ve heard of, but maybe this will shed some light on some of the greater players that aren’t the big names of the past. So I think that’s a great thing.”
