The New York Yankees‘ first round draft selection already put pen to paper on a long-term deal with the team. The catcher, best known for his offensive prowess, is eager to start his career with the organization that already drafted him once a couple of years ago.
The slugging backstop thinks that it is only a matter of time before he is hitting drives to Yankee Stadium‘s gaps and over the outfield walls.
The deal, worth $2.5 million, was slightly above slot value for the 28th pick, which is $2,493,900.
“The Yankees and I always had a very good relationship, and leading up to [this year’s Draft], we had a lot of great conversations,†Wells said. “Going throughout that day, I had a good range of where I felt was going in the back half of that first round. I’m super pumped that it was the Yankees, because of how great our relationship had been before.”
Following Yankees’ rules, he said goodbye to his beard
The young prospect knows that he is about to enter an adjustment period when it comes to the level of his competition. He also followed the organization’s rules of facial hair, shaving the beard he wore in his Arizona days.
“It’s definitely going to be an adjustment, having had it for the last two years,†Wells said. “But in high school, I had to shave it as well, so it won’t be that big of an adjustment.â€
Wells was ranked number 27 on MLB Pipeline’s Top 200 Draft Prospects list, so the Yankees took him right about where he was expected to go in this month’s draft.
The catcher was tearing up the competition until the coronavirus pandemic halted things, with a .375/.527/.589 slash line, 12 runs scored, six doubles, two homers and 14 RBIs in 15 games as a sophomore for the Wildcats. He had more walks (17) than strikeouts (14.)
The New York Yankees’ vice president of domestic amateur scouting Damon Oppenheimer had nothing but praise for Wells.
“He’s a good athlete and has performed at an elite level, with a really tremendous work ethic and makeup. We think he can be an impactful guy, especially in our stadium. He’s a mentally strong kid. I think the weight of the pinstripes aren’t going to really affect him like some others,†he said.