With a microphone and a room full of reporters in front of him, Aaron Boone acknowledged the obvious prior to Opening Day.
“We have questions,” the Yankees’ skipper said of his banged-up roster, “but we think we have answers too.”
One of those questions, even before the wave of injuries, was how the Yankees would handle the leadoff spot. The answer turned out to be catcher Austin Wells, who crushed six home runs while filling the job during camp.
On Thursday, Wells showed that his success batting first was no spring fling, as he took the third pitch he saw from Brewers righty Freddy Peralta over Yankee Stadium’s right field fence. The solo shot gave the Yankees instant offense in a 4-2, season-opening victory.
It also made some history, as Wells became the first catcher with an Opening Day leadoff home run in MLB history. The sophomore also became the first Yankee with a leadoff homer on Opening Day and the first Bombers backstop to start a game batting first.
Well(s) that was quick 💥
The first #OpeningDay home run comes off the bat of Austin Wells 💪 pic.twitter.com/0HZ3tGk6cj
— MLB (@MLB) March 27, 2025
“He homered his first [spring] plate appearance as a leadoff hitter, so that helped ease the transition a little bit,” Boone said pregame when asked when he realized Wells could hit first. “I think the world of Austin as a player. I think he’s going to become one of the really good two-way catchers in the league, and I think he’s ready to do that right now. So while I do feel like there are a number of guys in our lineup, maybe some of them younger, who can fit that bill, I feel like he’s ready to handle that.”
It wouldn’t have been unreasonable to think of Anthony Volpe as one of those alternatives given his speed and the Yankees’ lack of obvious leadoff candidates entering the spring. A close friend of Wells, the shortstop batted seventh on Thursday and hit his own bases-empty blast in the second inning to give the Yanks a 2-0 lead.
With the Yankees missing so many key pieces early in the season — not to mention Juan Soto’s departure — they’ll need young hitters like Wells and Volpe to produce at a high level this year.
Wells spent most of last season hitting fourth, but he fizzled out down the stretch and in the playoffs after catching an unprecedented workload. Still, he finished third in Rookie of the Year voting.
Volpe, meanwhile, is beginning a pivotal third season after two up-and-mostly-down seasons at the plate. The Yankees are hoping that a hard-hitting postseason and spring will translate to more consistency for the 23-year-old; Thursday served as an encouraging start.
Speaking of encouraging starts, Carlos Rodón spun one from the mound.
The lefty, taking the place of Tommy John recipient Gerrit Cole, allowed just one earned run, a third-inning solo homer from Vinny Capra, over 5.1 innings of work. Rodón, deploying a newly-revived sinker, also totaled four hits, two walks, seven strikeouts and 89 pitches.
One of those walks came on a 10-pitch plate appearance from Rhys Hoskins, which ended Rodón’s day. The sidewinding Tim Hill then had to work in and out of a bases-loaded jam.
The Dón Delivered. @Carlos_Rodon55 👊 pic.twitter.com/3bfhFGT4GW
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) March 27, 2025
The Yankees scored again in the seventh inning when an Aaron Judge grounder bounced off the third base bag and into left field. The literal base hit, a double, plated Ben Rice before Oswaldo Cabrera scored on newcomer Cody Bellinger’s sac fly.
Those extra runs proved important, as Brewers-turned-Yankees closer Devin Williams found trouble in his pinstriped debut. Fortunately for the air-bending righty, he limited his old team to a Brice Turang sac fly despite filling the bases with nobody out.
With the start of a new season underway, the Yankees and Brewers will enjoy an off day on Friday.
They’ll return to action on Saturday, when Max Fried is scheduled to make his Yankees debut. Fried, the de facto ace with Cole sidelined, inked an eight-year, $218 million deal with the Yankees over the winter.
“I’m really excited to get out there for the first time,” the former Brave said, though he wants to stay grounded in front of what’s sure to be a packed house. “The first one isn’t any more significant than any other one.”
There will be some significance for his Brewers counterpart, as Nestor Cortes will start for Milwaukee. It will be Cortes’ first appearance at Yankee Stadium since the pinstripers traded him and Caleb Durbin to the Brewers for Williams in December.
“I’m super excited,” said Cortes, who enjoyed three stints with the Yankees. “I want to see where I line up with those guys and hopefully go out there and throw five shutout [innings].”
