Austin Wells came within one swing of becoming the New York Yankees’ latest postseason hero Saturday night in St. Petersburg. Instead, an ill-fated decision on the basepaths abruptly ended the team’s comeback bid.
With two outs in the eighth inning of Game 1 of the American League Division Series, Wells snapped Drew Rasmussen’s no-hit bid with a double. But the Yankees catcher was thrown out trying to reach third, allowing the Tampa Bay Rays to maintain their 1-0 advantage.
The call was not especially close.
Wells drove an inside sinker just inside the right-field line, then tried to stretch the hit into a triple. Taylor Walls fielded the ball and fired to third, where Junior Caminero made an easy tag. Replays showed Wells had ignored third-base coach Luis Rojas, who raised both arms to signal him to stop before Wells even rounded second.
Wells acknowledged afterward that he had made the wrong choice, though he said he would not abandon his aggressive approach.
‘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 runs through a ‘stop’ sign from Yankees third base coach Luis Rojas
Rays third baseman Junior Caminero, left, tags out Yankees catcher Austin Wells
Caminero raises his glove after the crucial tag on Wells, which helped preserve the 1-0 lead
Yankees fans were far less forgiving.
‘Absolutely pathetic baseball,’ the Talkin’ Yanks podcast X account posted.
‘Austin Wells makes one of the worst baserunning decisions you’ll ever see,’ Barstool Baseball wrote in another X post.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone also conceded that Wells had made the wrong call, telling reporters: ‘Obviously, not a good decision there.’
Still, the night belonged primarily to Rasmussen, who has established himself as a formidable opponent for the Yankees. After Tampa Bay secured the victory, Rays manager Kevin Cash praised the right-hander lavishly.
‘That’s the nicest you’ve ever been about me,’ Rasmussen joked after greeting Cash.
The hard-throwing righty had earned every compliment.
‘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 hitters before Wells finally broke through with his eighth-inning double.
He neutralized a Yankees lineup that had produced 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 recorded the Yankees’ only hit Saturday, but his aggressive attempt to take an extra base ultimately wasted it.
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.
