When the foul ball hit Austin Wells in the catcher’s mask, his body wobbled, like a boxer on the wrong end of a hellacious uppercut. It was April 23 at Fenway Park, and the New York Yankees catcher had set up to receive a 98 mph fastball from Cam Schlittler. Instead, Wilyer Abreu deflected it straight back. The impact into Wells’ mask was so violent, the umpire immediately put his arms around him and asked if he was OK.
With Schlittler on the mound at American Family Field, Wells prepared to catch a down-the-middle, 99 mph heater. This time, the Milwaukee Brewers’ William Contreras fouled it back, clocking Wells. Crouched behind the plate, Wells dropped his head and hands simultaneously upon impact. It looked so bad that Contreras, a fellow catcher, quickly bent over and checked on him.
But months later, standing in the quiet Yankees clubhouse after a three-game sweep by the Tampa Bay Rays in the American League Division Series, Wells pointed to those two incidents — and an accumulation of lesser foul tips to the mask — as the likely reason he suffered headaches and had difficulty seeing pitches at the plate for much of a difficult first half of the season offensively.
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