Rice Is Just A Better Catcher Than Wells...

And the Yankees front office picked wrong again.

The Yankees didn’t draft Austin Wells out of Arizona because he was the next Thurman Munson. No, they grabbed him because he was a college catcher with a solid bat and because Michael Fishman and his analytics brigade saw some glittering “upside” buried in their spreadsheets. Unfortunately, as we sit here on August 12, it looks like they were digging in the wrong mine. Ben Rice is flat-out a better catcher and hitter right now, and that’s not just opinion—it’s scoreboard reality.

Seriously, does anyone in the Yankees’ front office know what they’re doing? The math department clearly isn’t failing to find numbers—they’re just picking the wrong ones to bet the farm on. And the way Aaron Boone talks about it? He sounds like a man trying to sell you a broken lawnmower.

Here’s Boone before the Twins series opener (which the Yanks won 6-2):

“He’s been struggling a bit, obviously, offensively. A part of it is I want to keep Ben [Rice] in there, and I think Ben has done a really good job behind the plate, too… It’s just trying to get the best grouping out there, day in and day out, to give us a chance to win a game.”

Translation: Wells is cold, Rice is hot, and Boone is pretending this is some complicated roster chess match instead of the obvious—play the guy who isn’t an automatic out. Boone is stupid at trying to act smart.

And yes, Wells should be seeing less playing time. While we’re at it, so should Anthony Volpe, but that rant deserves its own post. When you’ve got two everyday players giving you weak at-bats and gift-wrapping runs for the other team, you’re not building a playoff roster—you’re building a highlight reel for the opposition.

Wells isn’t just struggling—he’s soft behind the plate and miles away from the days of Posada and Munson. Yet Boone keeps handling him like a piece of fine china. The New York Post even quoted Wells insisting he’s “close” to figuring it out, saying:

“I’m just off the barrel on a lot of breaking balls… I think I know I’m getting a lot of off speed [pitches]… it’s just a matter of getting my body in the right position to hit a little harder and not at people.”

That’s nice. But with 43 games left, “almost” won’t cut it. If Rice is hitting and catching better, the decision should be simple—bench Wells, ride Rice, and at least pretend like you’re serious about winning.

At this point, the Yankees don’t need another pep talk. They need a jolt. And if Boone keeps running out Wells, that jolt is going to be the sound of fans slamming the door on the 2025 season.