Ali Sanchez Is Forcing Yankees' Hand Ahead of Austin Wells's Return

Is the 29-year-old righty slowly stealing the backup catcher job?

Ali Sánchez has been stepping up with Austin Wells sidelined, giving the Yankees an interesting thought to consider. | Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images

The Yankees received positive news earlier this week when Austin Wells began his rehab stint with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Tuesday. The 26-year-old catcher has been on the injured list with a neck injury since the first week of June, and even though he hasn't been perfect at the plate this season, Wells's reliable pitch-calling is something the Yankees would love to have back soon.

With the Scottsdale, AZ native on the shelf, New York has relied on J.C. Escarra and Ali Sánchez—who was called up from Scranton when Wells landed on the IL—to handle catching duties. Although it isn't the biggest sample size, Sánchez's recent performance is giving the Yankees something to think about as Wells's return to action looms.

Ali Sanchez is giving the Yankees reason to keep him before Austin Wells returns

At first, Sánchez's call-up wasn't showing much promise, as he went hitless with one walk and four strikeouts over seven at-bats in his first five games. But just when hope seemed lost, the 29-year-old backstop found a new gear in the last few days.

Sánchez recorded his first two hits of the season during Sunday's series finale against the Blue Jays, including an RBI double that helped put the Yankees up 2-0 in the second inning.

Yankees CATCHER Ali Sanchez drills an RBI double to the wall! pic.twitter.com/27uaY4irOw

— Talkin' Yanks (@TalkinYanks) June 14, 2026

After sitting for Tuesday's series opener vs. the White Sox, Sánchez returned to action for the second outing on Wednesday. It was another two-hit performance for the veteran catcher, who drove in Anthony Volpe with a single in the second inning again. Déjà-vu much?

With that performance, it's only the second time this season that a Yankees catcher has recorded consecutive multi-hit outings. Escarra tallied two hits in back-to-back appearances in April, while Wells has yet to do so, having only recorded more than one hit four times in 47 games so far.

Needless to say, Sánchez is giving the Yankees some rare offensive consistency from the catcher slot—especially when finding right-handed help at the position is something that fans want to see. It's a small sample size, but he's slashing .333/.333/.444 in nine at-bats against left-handed pitchers so far, with both of his RBIs coming off southpaws.

Ali Sánchez's recent offensive outburst comes on a small sample size, but it might be enough for the Yankees to consider keeping him around for the long haul. | Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images

Defensively, Sánchez has been reliable to the tune of 42 innings without an error. He also has a plus-1 catcher framing runs, according to Baseball Savant, which is tied for the 19th-best performance. It's also his third straight year with a positive performance in that regard.

For reference, Wells is tied for fourth (plus-4) while Escarra is in a tie for 27th (even).

Time to turn the page on J.C. Escarra

Speaking of Escarra, the 31-year-old Floridian could be the odd man out once Wells returns from the IL.

Even though Escarra had a two-hit performance of his own against the White Sox on Tuesday, he's still only slashing .179/.250/.231 with one RBI and eight strikeouts in his last 17 games dating back to May 8. He has raised his season batting average from .162 to .195 over the last four games; however, it wouldn't be the first time Yankees fans saw Escarra go on a heater only to disappear for a week or two this season.

J.C. Escarra hasn't given the Yankees many reasons to consistently trust him this season. | Denny Medley-Imagn Images

Let's also not forget the Yankees were ready to give Sánchez a shot and optioned Escarra to Triple-A earlier in June, but were forced to recall the latter shortly after Wells went down. If they were ready to turn the page on Escarra not too long ago, then who's to say they won't be again when Wells is healthy?

Even if Sánchez isn't a long-term solution behind home plate, he's showing the Yankees—offensively and defensively—that he deserves to stick around, whether that's as Wells's backup or in a platoon situation. If that doesn't work out, New York can always take a swing at a big fish before the trade deadline.

In the meantime, it's time to see if the Yankees' catcher solution is in-house.