AL DIVISION SERIES: YANKEES VS BLUE JAYS

October 7, 2025

Austin Wells

Yankee Stadium

New York Yankees

Pregame 3 Press Conference

Q. Just before we get started, we didn't see a lineup yet. You are in catching?

AUSTIN WELLS: I'm playing.

Q. Just double-checking.

AUSTIN WELLS: Yes, I'm catching.

Q. The last two games evident how good that Blue Jays offense can be. What can you gather from those two games that could possibly help you with Rodón this afternoon?

AUSTIN WELLS: They came out ready to go from the first inning both games. Definitely trying to get to good spots early and not take any pitch for chance and be aggressive, but into good spots.

Q. With Rodón, what tells you he has his best stuff early on?

AUSTIN WELLS: When he has his location. It's not necessarily about the stuff for me with him. It's more about how he's executing the pitch and the location that we want to go to. Hopefully we got that going tonight.

Q. What's the mindset of the ball club, in your mind, facing elimination?

AUSTIN WELLS: Same as it was last week. We've got to win today, and the real only focus is going out there at 8:00 and doing what we can to get Bieber off the mound as quickly as we can and put up a lot of runs so Carlos can go out there and do what he does best.

Q. Is there any reason when you look back over the last bunch of years that this team has responded well when you've been in that hole before?

AUSTIN WELLS: You said any reason?

Q. Any reason why this club seems to respond, almost play its best ball when your backs are to the wall?

AUSTIN WELLS: Yeah, I just feel like that's kind of where we've been this year. It shows the resilience of the team, and it shows the character of the players and our belief in each other.

It doesn't feel like an elimination game, per se, but we're going out there knowing we've got to win tonight.

Q. You were behind the plate for the games in Toronto. What is your take on why Toronto seemed to jump on you guys so quickly?

AUSTIN WELLS: I think they just didn't miss any mistakes. We threw some really competitive pitches to some spots in the zone, and they were ready for it. It was definitely a little bit of a re-evaluation after two games like that, but we're confident in our ability to play here at home.

Like I said, we go back there for Game 5, and it's anybody's game.

Q. With what Cam Schlittler's done this postseason, Yesavage and the rookies kind of across this postseason, what do you think has allowed these young pitchers to come up and just have the instant impact that they have?

AUSTIN WELLS: Yeah, like you said, all those guys coming in and really showing, I think, that they have nasty stuff. A lot of it is maybe some stuff guys haven't seen before, for example, the Yesavage guy's splitter from that angle. Not many guys throw like that.

So I think there's definitely a bit of an element of surprise and not a lot of data backing what their stuff actually does and what to expect. So there's definitely an element of surprise there.

I feel like every guy's coming up with nasty stuff, and it keeps getting better.

Q. And with Cam I'll ask too, with him coming up in July obviously, how valuable do you think him coming up that early in the season, having these three months leading up to now have been for him?

AUSTIN WELLS: For him personally, I feel like it gave him the experience to go out and do what he did in the first game of his career in the postseason last week. For us, I think he helped stabilize us a little bit there in the middle too, which led us to being tied for first in the AL East.

Q. You mentioned hopefully getting to Bieber early and getting him out early. How do you guys go about that?

AUSTIN WELLS: I think we're going to have a hitters meeting here soon and try to figure out that plan. Definitely just being aggressive in the zone, I think. That's probably going to be our take. I don't really have a couple secrets to give out here, but maybe we'll talk about it after the game.

Q. Couldn't help but notice your T-shirt. Is that an intentional tribute to your former teammate or is it just what was hanging in your locker maybe? What did you learn from Jose about calling a game specifically?

AUSTIN WELLS: A little bit of both. But just Jose being the guy that was there for me this last year and this year, it's led me to have incredible belief in the work that I'm doing to help the team win. And also not taking any pitches for granted. They all count the same whether we're up ten or it's a close game.

I think that was the main key points he helped me with. And just the amount of work that goes into creating a game plan to call for one time through the lineup let alone a couple times. That was just really some of the stuff that he helped me with last year in the early parts and throughout the playoff run last year.

Q. Luke indicated Saturday after the game that a lot of the discussion of not to be pitch tipping had gotten in his head and trying to get comfortable mechanics. What can you do when you catch him to just let him be himself?

AUSTIN WELLS: When you cross over the white line, you've got to be just full competitor. You can practice all you want before. But when it's game time, I think you've just got to be aggressive and be on the attack. You can't let some of those things hold you back a little bit.

Just for me, it's just emphasizing that and reiterating that going in. Just be aggressive, attack the zone, and do what you do best, and it's going to work out more times than not.

Q. Had he expressed that to you, that all the tinkering had been getting to him?

AUSTIN WELLS: No.

Q. When Cam came up in early July, was there one or two things that really struck you where you said, this kid at this level is going to be okay?

AUSTIN WELLS: Yeah, I mean, even in Spring Training, just getting to catch him a few times, definitely knew the stuff was real and he had the ability to pitch. I felt like it was a matter of time before he did come up here and help us this year or beginning of next year.

Obviously I'm glad he came up when he did and rattled off some really great starts for us and is still doing it. Just the way that he composes himself on the mound, he turns on to a different character really for me, and I notice it. You see him walking off the mound, kind of no emotion, I think it's pretty cool. He's definitely a guy you want on the mound for sure.

Q. Yesterday most of you guys had most of the day off. After two losses like that in Toronto, do you use that time to get your mind off baseball for a while? I know you're a guy that likes a lot of video. Do you watch more? Did any of the guys get together to try to talk it out and strategize, panic situation, hey, we've got to turn this around? What was yesterday like for you and maybe some of the other guys?

AUSTIN WELLS: Yeah, everybody's different. Everyone handles loss in different ways. For me, just use it as a mental reset day, get in, get some treatment, and be ready to go today. For others, I'm sure there was a lot of discussion about what the next step is going to be going into today. It's to each their own in that regard.

I feel like the spirits were high yesterday, and the fact that we didn't get in too late the night before and had a good day of rest, I think it's going to benefit us.

Q. What kind of advantage can it be playing here at home? When you think back to those Games 2 and 3 against the Red Sox last week, what kind of impact did that have on you guys as players?

AUSTIN WELLS: Yeah, playing here, I think it's one of the hardest places to play as an opponent. You got the fans, you got the aura of the stadium working against you. So for us we have all the confidence that we can win every game, but especially when we're here. We've got the fans behind us. The energy that they bring and the energy that we have being at home, I definitely feel like it helps us, and it's helped us throughout the year as well.

Q. As a catcher, what is your perspective as to why Shane Bieber had success early on and throughout his career in Cleveland?

AUSTIN WELLS: I don't know. I hadn't really seen him throw at all. Watching him the last couple days is the first time I've really seen him throw.