Austin Wells’ baserunning blunder in Game 1 of the ALDS understandably loomed over everything else he had done this postseason coming into Wednesday.
But otherwise, the Yankees catcher had spent the playoffs performing like the player the club was banking on all along even after a largely brutal regular season.
Entering Game 3 with the season on the line, Wells was 5-for-12 with two doubles, four RBIs and two sacrifice flies in four playoff games, which earned him a jump up the lineup Wednesday against the Rays.
As part of a slight shakeup to his lineup, Aaron Boone batted Wells sixth, which he had only done one other time this season, matching the highest he has hit in the order this year.
The move did not pay off as Wells went 0-for-3 before being lifted for pinch hitter Giancarlo Stanton with a runner on and two outs in the eighth. Stanton, though, struck out as the Yankees headed for a 4-3, season-ending loss.
Wells had been a staple in the bottom third of the lineup all season, including batting eighth or ninth in each of his four playoff games before Wednesday.
But in addition to the results, he had been putting together the kind of tough at-bats that he is capable of but did not always show during a regular season in which he hit .186 with a .624 OPS (much more of a threat in the second half than in the first).
Through all the offensive ups and downs, Wells has continued to handle his pitching staff well and earn their adoration.
“I think when baseball players talk about pros’ pros and guys really handling their business, [there is] a lot of respect inside the room for how Austin has gone about it and how he’s really continued to get better throughout the regular season,” Gerrit Cole said earlier in the series.
Boone also dropped Spencer Jones — the Yankees cleanup hitter in each of the prior three playoff games — down to batting eighth in the lineup, the lowest he has hit against a right-hander since May 19 (facing Dylan Cease).
Jones entered Game 3 batting 2-for-15 with a walk and seven strikeouts in the postseason. But he a good Game 3, going 1-for-2 with an RBI double, two walks and a run scored.
Before Game 3, a handful of Yankees took bunting practice against a pitching machine — something they have done from time to time this year, but certainly not regularly.
It came as they had mustered just two runs through the first two games of the ALDS, both on solo home runs from Ben Rice.
