The Yankees continued their impressive spring with a 4–0 shutout win over the Detroit Tigers on Friday night, riding the hot bat of catcher Austin Wells and some dominant pitching performances.
It wasn’t a flashy night offensively, but the Bombers made their hits count — all eight of them. The story of the night, though, belonged to Wells, who knocked in all four runs with authority.
Wells Takes Over at the Plate
Wells has been building steam throughout camp, and on Friday, the 24-year-old catcher let loose. He went 3-for-4 at the plate, crushing two home runs — one of which was a three-run blast in the seventh inning that broke the game wide open.
That bomb drove in Ismael Munguia and Andrew Velazquez, who had reached earlier in the inning. Wells has been getting reps as the team’s leadoff hitter against right-handed pitching, and performances like this show why. When he’s locked in, Wells has elite bat speed and the kind of patience that forces pitchers into mistakes.
Rice Stays Red-Hot
Ben Rice added to his strong spring campaign with a pair of doubles across four at-bats. The 26-year-old lefty slugger is seeing the ball well, spraying hard contact to all fields, and looking every bit the part of the team’s opening day designated hitter while Giancarlo Stanton remains sidelined.
With Stanton expected to miss the first half of the season, Rice’s breakout has come at the perfect time — and he continues to capitalize on the opportunity.
Rodón Sharp Again as Pitching Dominates
On the mound, Carlos Rodón kept things tidy over 4.2 scoreless innings. The left-hander scattered three hits and struck out five, looking more composed with each start this spring. After a rocky debut season in the Bronx, Rodón is hoping to turn the page and become a steady presence at the top of the rotation.
Yoendrys Gómez followed with 2.1 scoreless frames of his own, continuing his excellent Grapefruit League showing. The 24-year-old righty has quietly made a name for himself this spring and is putting real pressure on the Yankees’ decision-makers as they finalize the bullpen.
The Yankees will look to keep the momentum going Saturday afternoon when they take on the Philadelphia Phillies at 1:05 PM.