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Yankees’ Austin Wells struggles in Game 3 after getting moved up in lineup

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Cite

Joyce, G. (2026, October 8). Yankees’ Austin Wells struggles in Game 3 after getting moved up in lineup. New York Post. https://nypost.com/2026/10/08/sports/yankees-austin-wells-struggles-in-game-3-after-getting-moved-up-in-lineup/

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

New York Post · collected 2026-10-08 · by Greg Joyce

Quick Summary

No summary of this article yet; the story summary below covers the event.

AI analysis

Story summary

Lineup Changes and Player Performances

Key Players and Their Roles

Overall Team Performance

These factors led to the Yankees' elimination from the playoffs, leaving the team with significant questions heading into the offseason regarding player performance and strategic decisions.

Written for “Yankees Lose ALDS To Rays” on 2026-10-31, grounded in this article and the 9 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Yankees Lose ALDS To Rays
Sports · 10 article(s) covering the same event. See how they differ ↓

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 7% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
Fox News
Hedges 2 of 19 claims Outlet record 69/100
“Article A describes Austin Wells being thrown out at third in Game 1 of the ALDS on October 4th, while Article B discusses his performance and baserunning blunder in the context of Game 3 on October 7th.”
New York Post
Hedges 0 of 8 claims Outlet record 66/100
“Article A describes ALDS Game 1 where Drew Rasmussen no-hit the Yankees for 7 ⅔ innings. Article B discusses Austin Wells' performance in a later Game 3 of the same series.”
New York Post
Hedges 0 of 6 claims Outlet record 66/100
“The articles describe different games in the ALDS series between the Yankees and Rays, not the same specific incident.”
New York Post
Hedges 2 of 22 claims Outlet record 66/100
“The articles discuss different games in the ALDS series (Game 1 vs. Game 3) involving distinct events and player performances.”
Toronto Star
Hedges 1 of 31 claims Outlet record 64/100
“Article A describes Austin Wells' baserunning mistake in Game 1 of the ALDS on October 4th, while Article B discusses his performance and struggles specifically related to Game 3 of the same series.”
New York Post
Hedges 0 of 15 claims Outlet record 66/100
“The articles refer to different events within the ALDS series: Article A discusses a blunder by Austin Wells in Game 1, while Article B covers his performance and lineup changes for Game 3.”
New York Post
Hedges 0 of 10 claims Outlet record 66/100
“The articles describe different games in the ALDS series: Game 2 according to Article A and Game 3 according to Article B.”
Fox News
Hedges 2 of 16 claims Outlet record 69/100
“Article A describes Game 2 of the ALDS where Yankees lost 5-2, while Article B discusses Game 3 where it mentions Austin Wells' performance.”
Toronto Star
Hedges 1 of 39 claims Outlet record 64/100
“The articles describe different games in the series: Article A covers Game 2 on October 6th, while Article B discusses Game 3 on October 8th.”
New York Post
Hedges 0 of 12 claims Outlet record 66/100
“While both articles discuss aspects of Game 3 of the Yankees vs. Rays ALDS series on October 7-8, 2026, they focus on different elements: Article A predicts Tampa Bay's pitching strategy and outcome, while Article B focuses on Austin Wells' performance in the game.”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
14
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
7%
1 of 14 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Publisher signals
66/100
New York Post's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
10
Sports
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-10-08 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

New York Post · 15592 article(s) · 35 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 35 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Greg Joyce
60 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 Except in practical terms for the Yankees, it will be crammed into the next month before the sport is expected to shut down because of a lockout.
🔮 Whether the two will finally match up again to allow him to be any kind of contributor for the Yankees in 2027, though, remains very much in question, setting up a $15 million decision. Access the Yankees beat like never before Join Post Sports+ for exciting subscriber-only features, including real-time texting with Greg Joyce about the inside buzz on the Yankees. Try it freeAfter three separate calf strains sidelined him for five-plus months and relegated him to a pair of pinch-hit at-bats in October, the soon-to-be 37-year-old DH entered the offseason healthy.
🔮 Pitching coach Matt Blake and the team are in the midst of negotiating a new contract and moving toward a deal, The Post’s Joel Sherman reported Friday, which would ensure that the Yankees hang on to one of the best at his job in the game.
🔮 Some Yankees bosses may have been irked by Aaron Judge questioning whether they have gone all in enough, but Hal Steinbrenner insists he was not one of them.
🔮 After another disappointing playoff exit, Boone is coming back for a 10th season as manager next year, with Cashman also expected to return for his 30th season as general manager on a new contract.
🔮 The current president of baseball operations for the Mets was the top decision-maker for the Brewers (as general manager and then president of baseball operations) from September 2015 through October 2022, then spent the following year in an advisory role to ownership before landing in Queens. Access the Mets beat like never before Don’t miss Mike Puma’s text messages from Queens and beyond — he’s giving Sports+ subscribers the inside buzz on the Mets. Sign up NowDuring that time, through amateur drafts, international signings and trades, Stearns helped build the foundation of the roster that just swept the Dodgers in the NLCS and will play in the organization’s first World Series in 44 years.
🔮 Boone also dropped Spencer Jones — the Yankees cleanup hitter in each of the prior three playoff games — down to batting eighth in the lineup, the lowest he has hit against a right-hander since May 19 (facing Dylan Cease).
🔮 He may have more talent and tools than almost any other player on the roster, most notably his speed, athleticism and power, but the Yankees have not been able to get that out of him regularly enough, especially this year.
🔮 McMahon has not brought much offensively and then committed a fielding error on the first ball put in play in the bottom of the first inning on Saturday night at Tropicana Field, the first of four the Yankees would make in Game 2.
🔮 “So there would’ve been a right-hander I would have used at some point had we gotten runners on base, but by the time he was in the game it was 5-1.
Also by Greg Joyce
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 60 articles by Greg Joyce →

Topics

ALDS Game 1 Game 3 Post Sports+ Yankees

Subjects

Yankees ORG · 6× Wells PERSON · 5× Aaron Boone PERSON · 1× Austin GPE · 1× Austin Wells’ PERSON · 1× Giancarlo Stanton PERSON · 1× Greg Joyce PERSON · 1× Post Sports+ ORG · 1× Rays ORG · 1× Stanton PERSON · 1×

Narrative

Wells had been a staple in the bottom third of the lineup all season, including batting eighth or ninth in each of his four playoff games before Wednesday. But in addition to the results, he had been putting together the kind of tough at-bats that he is capable of but did not always show during a regular season in which he hit .186 with a .624 OPS (much more of a threat in the second half than in the first).
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-10-08
🔮 Boone also dropped Spencer Jones — the Yankees cleanup hitter in each of the prior three playoff games — down to batting eighth in the lineup, the lowest he has hit against a right-hander since May 19 (facing Dylan Cease).
2026-10-08 · New York Post
Yankees’ Austin Wells struggles in Game 3 after getting moved up in lineup · assertive framing

Claims (14 extracted, 1 hedged)

Austin Wells’ baserunning blunder in Game 1 of the ALDS understandably loomed over everything else he had done this postseason coming into Wednesday. asserted
he → loom → Wednesday
But otherwise, the Yankees catcher had spent the playoffs performing like the player the club was banking on all along even after a largely brutal regular season. asserted
club → spend → season
Try it freeEntering Game 3 with the season on the line, Wells was 5-for-12 with two doubles, four RBIs and two sacrifice flies in four playoff games, which earned him a jump up the lineup Wednesday against the Rays. asserted
which → try → Rays
As part of a slight shakeup to his lineup, Aaron Boone batted Wells sixth, which he had only done one other time this season, matching the highest he has hit in the order this year. asserted
he → bat → order
The move did not pay off as Wells went 0-for-3 before being lifted for pinch hitter Giancarlo Stanton with a runner on and two outs in the eighth. asserted
Wells → pay → eighth
Stanton, though, struck out as the Yankees headed for a 4-3, season-ending loss. asserted
Yankees → strike → loss
Wells had been a staple in the bottom third of the lineup all season, including batting eighth or ninth in each of his four playoff games before Wednesday. But in addition to the results, he had been putting together the kind of tough at-bats that he is capable of but did not always show during a regular season in which he hit .186 with a .624 OPS (much more of a threat in the second half than in the first). asserted
he → include → first
Through all the offensive ups and downs, Wells has continued to handle his pitching staff well and earn their adoration. asserted
Wells → continue → adoration
“I think when baseball players talk about pros’ pros and guys really handling their business, [there is] a lot of respect inside the room for how Austin has gone about it and how he’s really continued to get better throughout the regular season,” Gerrit Cole said earlier in the series. asserted
Cole → think → series
Boone also dropped Spencer Jones — the Yankees cleanup hitter in each of the prior three playoff games — down to batting eighth in the lineup, the lowest he has hit against a right-hander since May 19 (facing Dylan Cease). uncertain
he → drop → Cease
Jones entered Game 3 batting 2-for-15 with a walk and seven strikeouts in the postseason. asserted
Jones → enter → postseason
But he a good Game 3, going 1-for-2 with an RBI double, two walks and a run scored. asserted
he → go → double
Before Game 3, a handful of Yankees took bunting practice against a pitching machine — something they have done from time to time this year, but certainly not regularly. asserted
they → take → time
It came as they had mustered just two runs through the first two games of the ALDS, both on solo home runs from Ben Rice. asserted
they → come → Rice
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