Austin Wells Explained The Headaches, But Not The Bigger Yankees Problem

Austin Wells spoke about the headaches, but the Yankees’ catcher problem was already sitting right in front of everybody.

Let me say this before people start crying.

You hope Austin Wells is fine. Headaches, pressure at the top of the head, scans, all of that, go get checked out. That is what you are supposed to do. Nobody with sense is sitting here rooting for the guy to be hurt.

But the interview does not erase the baseball part.

Before Wells went on the IL, before he talked about the pressure, before the hockey-style mask, the bat was already a major problem.

.166 average. 4 home runs. 7 RBI.

That is your starting catcher for the New York Yankees.

The Interview Explained The Injury, Not The Season

Wells said there was no one moment where it started. He talked about pressure at the top of his head, headaches, feeling a little off, and finally getting to the point where he felt like he had to tell the trainers.

Good. That is the right move.

He also said he already felt better after getting away from it for a day. He is going for scans, hoping to rule out anything serious, and he mentioned that this could just be a buildup from catching every day.

That part makes sense.

Catching is a brutal position. You get beat up. Foul tips, balls in the dirt, masks getting rattled, neck getting jammed up. It adds up.

But again, that explains why he is on the IL.

It does not explain why the Yankees have been watching an automatic out behind the plate for most of the season.

The Bat Has Been Missing

This is where the frustration comes from.

Yankees fans are not mad because Wells got hurt. They are mad because this was already ugly before the injury.

The at-bats have been bad. The swing decisions have been bad. Too many strikeouts. Not enough contact. Not enough damage. Not enough anything.

And the Yankees keep selling the same thing.

Framing. Receiving. Pitchers like throwing to him. Great.

At some point, you have to hit.

This Is Not Yankees Catcher History

Historically, the Yankees do not do this at catcher.

Yogi Berra. Thurman Munson. Jorge Posada. Mike Stanley. Jim Leyritz. Joe Girardi. Russell Martin. Brian McCann. Gary Sanchez before it went left. Even Jose Trevino gave you something useful. The list of catchers goes on and on.

Now look at this.

Wells is hurt. J.C. Escarra has not hit either. Ali Sanchez is suddenly part of the conversation. That right there tells you the Yankees are scrambling.

And this is not about blaming Sanchez. He is depth. The problem is the Yankees trusted Wells like the bat was guaranteed to show up, and it has not.

The Yankees Have To Be Honest

This goes back to evaluation.

The Yankees valued Wells like a future answer. They gave him the runway. They moved forward like the development was coming.

When your catcher is hitting .166, fans are not being dramatic. They are watching the games.

So yes, let Wells get healthy. Let the scans come back clean. Let him try the new mask. Let him get right.

But when he comes back, the conversation cannot be just about defense anymore.

The Yankees need a catcher who can survive at the plate.

Right now, that spot has been dead with the bat.

Dead.

Felix Pantaleón

Founder

About the Author Latest Posts

Born in Manhattan, New York, Felix Pantaleon is a Dominican-American digital content creator and the founder of NYYNEWS, one of the first and longest-running independent New York Yankees content creator platforms, active since 2005.

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