“Awful,” one National League scout assigned to the Yankees' system said recently of his impressions of Wells defensively when he first saw him with Low-A Tampa in 2021. “I mean, really bad.” “Couldn’t throw,” said another NL scout who covers the Yankees’ minor leagues.

Wells made history with his leadoff blast, becoming the first catcher in Yankees history to homer to start a season and the first Yankee period to ever hit a leadoff home run on Opening Day. He is also the first catcher in MLB history to lead off a game on Opening Day with a home run. Volpe’s homer came an inning later and was even more impressive.

Wells became the first catcher to hit leadoff for the Yankees, who were established in 1913. And he led off the opener with a home run.