Yankees MLBPA Rep Austin Wells Shares Confidence in Union

The New York Yankees have selected catcher Austin Wells as their representative in the Major League Baseball Player's Association (MLBPA) — the baseball player's union — after a major scandal rocked the organization. Wells is one of 38 player representatives, with each team appointing one player and eight additional players elected to an executive subcommittee.

The player's union faced a big shakeup this week after long time director Tony Clark resigned. The Athletic initially reported Clark's resignation, which comes after a federal investigation by the Eastern District of New York for allegedly mishandling union funds to enrich himself.

As a result of the federal probe, an internal investigation revealed Clark was having an inappropriate relationship with a union employee who is also his sister-in-law and he was asked to step down. Questions have been popping up about how the MLBPA will handle contract negotiations, though ESPN's Jeff Passan reported that Bruce Meyer was unanimously selected as the interim executive director. The current collective bargaining agreement (CBA) expires in December and became effective in March of 2022.

According to a post by Yankees insider Gary Phillips on social media, Wells is undeterred by the scandal and believes the union can still reach a new CBA that benefits both the players and league,

"We’re just as strong as we were Friday vs. today,” Wells said. “I think we have a lot of confidence in our executive subcommittee."