As a Yankee fan who started following the team in the late 1980s, it’s a given that I grew up a Don Mattingly fan.  What will surprise you, though, is that I was equally a big fan of Matt Nokes and Don Slaught.  I always wanted to be a catcher, and I always liked Yankee catchers, well, until now.  Forty-seven games into the season, and it’s obvious the Yankees have a huge catching problem.  So, let’s see how bad it is, whether the Yankees have missed opportunities, and what can be done about it.

The Yankees are getting no production from their catchers

 Yankees catchers are tied for 2nd in MLB in walks with 22.  That ends the good part of this segment.  Yankees catchers rank 26th in OPS, 27th in SLG, 28th in batting average, and they have combined for a pathetic amount of RBIs with 11, which is tied for last in MLB.  Whether it is Austin Wells or JC Escarra, the position has been a black hole.  

This is who Austin Wells is

 Well, sort of, but not really.  The Yankees brought up Austin Wells in 2023 as an offense-minded catcher.  In 2024, he finished third in the rookie of the year voting.  Hopes were so high for him that he was actually the leadoff hitter to open up the 2025 season.  As the season wore on, though, he continued to disappoint, ending up with a slash line of .219/.275/.436 (.711 OPS).  Oh, how Yankees fans would kill for that slash line, as this year he has one of .173/.292/.264 (.556 OPS), and he has a mind-boggling FIVE RBIs in 110 at-bats.  In 2025, his power kept him afloat, and this year, it is missing.  Oddly, the only thing he can do this year is work his walks, which is what he didn’t do last year, which is why he has a higher OBP this year.  

Just think of all the good catchers the Yankees could still have

 Well, quantity does not equal quality.  There are 8 former Yankees catchers in the big leagues today, which is almost certainly their most prevalent position.  Here is what they have done this year:

Carlos Narvaez (Bos): .225/.289/.348 (.637 OPS)

Luis Torrens (NYM): .200/.262/.283 (.545 OPS)

Jose Trevino (CIN): .138/.167/.172 (.339 OPS)

Gary Sanchez (MIL): .198/.361/.430 (.791 OPS)

Kyle Higashioka (TEX): .211/.273/.310 (.583 OPS)

Jesus Rodriguez (SFG): .214/.267/.321 (.588 OPS)

Agustin Ramirez (MIA): .230/.318/.345 (.663 OPS)

Rafael Flores (PIT): .200/.294/.333 (.627 OPS)

 

Gary Sanchez has cooled off after a hot start.  He is the only one of the former Yankee catchers who is above average.  In fact, Wells would be almost in the middle of this pack.

So, is starting JC Escarra the answer

No, just no.  His .174/.224/.283 slash line is somehow worse than Austin Wells.  And it’s not an aberration.  Last year, he hit .202/.296/.333, which is almost as bad.  He is not even a good defensive catcher.  If someone tells you Escarra is the answer, they are wrong.

So what is the answer?

Austin Wells has been bad overall this year, but he has been putrid against lefties with a .119/.191/.190 slash line, which is worse than a pitcher.  So, having a lefty back him up makes less than no sense.  The short-term solution is to send Escarra down to AAA and call up either Ali Sanchez or Payton Henry, both of whom are right-handed and both have identical AAA slash lines (.268/.368/.451 vs. .265/.365/.448) in almost the same exact amount of at-bats (and they are almost the same age).  Both have some major league experience.  The Yankees can flip a coin to choose who to bring up, and with two open roster spots, adding a third catcher is a prudent move.  At this stage, bringing up a AAA catcher can’t be any worse than what is at the major league level.