The Yankees played their final spring training game at George M. Steinbrenner Field on Sunday afternoon, finishing in a 3–3 draw against the Tampa Bay Rays. While the bats remained mostly quiet, catcher Austin Wells stayed red hot, continuing to look like the breakout star the Yankees are banking on in 2025.
Austin Wells Can’t Be Stopped
Wells had just two at-bats but made the most of them, driving in two runs with a towering homer in the bottom of the fifth inning and also drawing a walk. He’s been dialed in all spring, hammering pitches and showing tremendous plate discipline—exactly what you want from your leadoff hitter against righties.
The Yankees had just four hits on the day, with Paul Goldschmidt, Anthony Volpe, and Braden Shewmake each collecting one. Volpe also worked a walk, while Shewmake’s hit came on a well-timed single that extended a rally. The lineup overall struggled, striking out 10 times and missing several opportunities to drive in runs.
Judge Still Searching For His Timing
Aaron Judge’s spring has been more of a slow burn than a sizzle. He picked up two more strikeouts on Sunday, dropping his spring line to .129/.282/.258. It’s been a quieter-than-expected ramp-up for the Yankees’ captain, but the team isn’t sounding any alarms. Judge tends to heat up when it matters most, and a few games into the regular season could be all he needs to find his groove.
Max Fried Has an Uneven Outing
On the mound, Max Fried made his final tune-up before Opening Day and ran into some trouble. He tossed 5.1 innings, allowing four hits and three earned runs with three walks and four strikeouts. Fried’s ERA for the spring sits at 3.38, a respectable number but one that includes a few bumpy innings across his outings.
Still, his stuff looked sharp for most of the game, and his pitch mix continues to impress. With Gerrit Cole out for the season, the Yankees will be counting heavily on Fried to lead the rotation alongside Carlos Rodón.
Bullpen Closes the Door
Following Fried’s departure, the bullpen held strong. The Yankees didn’t allow a run over the final 3.2 innings, giving fans a glimpse of what could be one of the better relief corps in baseball.
- Yankees 2, Marlins 4: Good news and bad news as Bombers drop spring finale
- Yankees’ new rotation arm went from spring hero to liability
- Yankees planning another surprise move before opening day
Looking Ahead
The Yankees have just two spring games left—one against the Mets on Monday and another versus the Marlins on Tuesday. They’ll open the regular season Thursday afternoon against the Milwaukee Brewers with Rodón taking the mound.
The bats may be a little chilly, but the optimism around players like Wells and a deep bullpen gives the Yankees plenty to feel good about.