Austin Wells, the New York Yankees’ starting catcher, is focusing on improving both his defensive and offensive skills as he enters his second full season with the team. Wells acknowledged early in his career that there were concerns about his defense, especially regarding framing, blocking, and throwing. “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.”
Wells has since become one of Major League Baseball’s top-rated catchers in terms of pitch framing. Over the past two seasons, he has recorded a league-best 19 framing runs at the bottom of the strike zone and ranks third overall in catcher framing runs (23). He also achieved a 46.6% called-strike rate on non-swings in the shadow zone—seventh among qualified catchers—but remains average in blocking and throwing.
Catching coach Tanner Swanson explained that this improvement was intentional: “It’s been by design, based on the guys we have and how we pitch down in the zone,” Swanson said. “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 also praised Wells for quickly adapting to coaching: “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… The separator for him is his diligence in wanting to improve and change the narrative.”
Manager Aaron Boone highlighted Wells’ offensive contributions last season when he posted a .219 batting average with 22 doubles, 21 home runs, and 71 RBIs over 126 games. Boone expects further progress at bat: “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… 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.”
Wells admitted it can be challenging to separate defensive duties from offensive performance but sees consistency at bat as his next step forward: “I feel like I’ve shown what I’m capable of [offensively] in spurts… 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.”
