Austin Wells had a chance to become the New York Yankees’ latest postseason hero Saturday night in St. Petersburg. Instead, an aggressive baserunning mistake abruptly ended the club’s comeback hopes.
Wells broke up Drew Rasmussen’s no-hit bid with a two-out double in the eighth inning of Game 1 of the American League Division Series. But the Yankees catcher was thrown out trying to reach third, allowing Tampa Bay to hold on to its 1-0 lead.
There was little doubt about the call at third.
Wells lined Rasmussen’s inside sinker just fair down the right-field line, then attempted to stretch the hit into a triple. Taylor Walls collected the relay and fired to third baseman Junior Caminero, who made an easy tag. Replays showed Wells had ignored a stop sign from third-base coach Luis Rojas, who had both arms raised before Wells rounded second.
Wells acknowledged afterward that he had made the wrong call, though he defended his willingness to take a chance.
‘You have to take risks,’ he said. ‘In that situation, obviously the risk was wrong. I took the risk, didn’t work out.’
Austin Wells ignores a stop sign from Yankees third-base coach Luis Rojas
Rays third baseman Junior Caminero tags Yankees catcher Austin Wells at third
Junior Caminero celebrates after making the pivotal tag that preserved Tampa Bay’s 1-0 advantage
Yankees fans were quick to agree, although their criticism was considerably harsher.
‘Absolutely pathetic baseball,’ the Talkin’ Yanks podcast account posted on X.
‘Austin Wells makes one of the worst baserunning decisions you’ll ever see,’ Barstool Baseball wrote in another post on X.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone offered a similar assessment, telling reporters afterward: ‘Obviously, not a good decision there.’
Still, the night ultimately belonged to Rasmussen, who has repeatedly troubled the Yankees and received an enthusiastic endorsement from Rays manager Kevin Cash after Tampa Bay’s victory.
‘That’s the nicest you’ve ever been about me,’ Rasmussen joked after greeting Cash.
The hard-throwing right-hander had earned every bit of the praise.
‘He was dominant before the break,’ Cash said. ‘He’s elite all season long. He’s really done that since he’s been a Tampa Bay Ray, coming over here, and his contributions. Feels like he continues to get better.’
Rasmussen retired 15 straight batters before Wells finally ended the no-hit bid with his double.
He controlled a Yankees lineup that had scored 18 runs while sweeping Boston in the two-game Wild Card Series. New York was also without three-time American League MVP Aaron Judge, who has been sidelined by a calf injury since September 16.
Wells had the Yankees’ only hit Saturday, but his aggressive decision on the bases cost him the chance to score
Rasmussen’s no-hit bid came to an end in the eighth inning on Saturday in St. Petersburg
‘You say the word dominate. Man, I feel like I’m grinding out there,’ Rasmussen said. ‘I mean, it’s the same thing regardless of the lineup. If you execute on a day, hitting’s really hard. And so it’s just one of those things that can I go out and throw strike one and can I execute at a zone with two strikes.’
The 31-year-old Rasmussen struck out 10 and walked two in eight innings. He threw 69 of 101 pitches for strikes, getting 23 swings and misses against a batting order that started eight left-handed hitters.
‘I thought he was really sharp,’ Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. ‘I thought his changeup was good for him and in play. Obviously, with our left-handed hitters, it looked like he had the cutter going when he needed to. Then the good four-seamer where he mixed in some sinkers off of it. His command is just really good and kind of what sets him apart. He’s got a great arsenal. The ability to pitch on both sides of the plate and up and down obviously makes him challenging and one we’ve had a hard time solving.’
Bryan Baker pitched a perfect ninth for the save, finishing the one-hitter. He struck out pinch-hitter Giancarlo Stanton, in his first plate appearance since April 24 after recovering from calf injuries, froze Ben Rice with a changeup for a called third strike and retired Cody Bellinger on a grounder to secure Tampa Bay’s first postseason win since 2021.
Cam Schlittler, the favorite to win the AL Cy Young Award, will start Game 2 for the Yankees on Monday, while right-hander Freddy Peralta will take the mound for the Rays.