Yankees Share Huge News on Injured Catcher

The New York Yankees will face off against the Toronto Blue Jays for the fourth and final time in a dismal series tonight, and one recently-injured player is projected to be back in the lineup.

Yankees starting catcher Austin Wells, who has sat out for four games with an unusual circulation issue in his left index finger, is expected back for the game after tests confirmed he is negative for blood clots and instead is suffering from arterial damage. The finger reportedly "gets cold and changes colors." A cool party trick, but not expected to be a long-term medical problem.

“Wellsy is good to go,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “He’ll be in there tomorrow starting, and available tonight.”

In his absence, designated hitter Ben Rice started at catcher for Wednesday's game, and JC Escarra started on Monday and Tuesday. Escarra was hit with two base-loading catcher's interference calls, one in each game, and felt responsible for the Yankees loss on Tuesday after the call led to a Blue Jays lead early on.

Wells has had an off-and-on season, starting out strong with a home run in his first at-bat on opening day. He's been ranking among the best-hitting catchers in the league this season, currently tied for sixth with the Los Angeles Dodgers' catcher Will Smith, at 11 home runs.

On the other hand, so to speak, he has described some difficulty balancing his role as a consistent catcher with his ability to produce on offense, and that difficulty has begun to show. In his last 15 games he has slashed .188/.216/.313 with one home run and nine RBIs, contributing in his own way to the Yankees' current offensive problems.

Outfielder Trent Grisham, who was out on Tuesday and Wednesday with hamstring tightness, was also projected to be back in the lineup Thursday and had completed a pregame workout on Tuesday. As it happened, he ended up pinch hitting for DJ LeMahieu in the eighth inning of Wednesday's game, beating even the team's ideal projected timeline.

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