ANAHEIM \u2014 With the Yankees and Angels knotted at one on Wednesday, Austin Wells stepped to the plate with the bases loaded and two out in the 10th inning.<\/p>\n
The Bombers, or at least their fans, would have wanted just about anybody else up in that spot not too long ago, as Wells was one of the worst hitters in baseball<\/a> over the first few months of the season. But the left-handed hitter\u2019s fortunes have changed over the last month-plus, and his success continued when he grounded a two-run single in extras on Wednesday.<\/p>\n The knock capped a six-pitch at-bat against Luke Murphy and jump-started a five-run rally in the 10th inning. That set the second-place Yankees up for a 6-3 win and allowed them to gain a game on the first-place Rays, who lost earlier in the day.<\/p>\n Not a bad night for Wells, who didn\u2019t enter the game until the eighth inning.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s making a living doing that right now, coming off the bench and getting fat,\u201d said Aaron Boone, referring to a few other recent games in which Wells made an impact off the bench.<\/p>\n Sub or starter, Wells has been helping at the plate for a little while now. While he\u2019s hitting just .190 with a .597 OPS overall after going 2-for-2 on Wednesday, he entered the series finale with a .245 average, a .793 OPS, five doubles, six home runs and 16 RBI over his last 42 games.<\/p>\n \u201cYou feel like he\u2019s that threat again down there, and that\u2019s massive,\u201d Boone said of Wells, who hit .148 with a .468 OPS, four homers and 10 RBI over his first 62 games of the season. That stretch included a stint on the injured list for cervical headaches<\/a>, the result of taking a beating behind the plate.<\/p>\n In retrospect, that time on the shelf was a blessing in disguise, as Wells was able to work with Jarret DeHart, the Yankees\u2019 hitting director, and other coaches while on the IL and during a rehab assignment.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was just kind of the understanding of where my swing was at, and then how I was missing, whether it was actually missing or fouling stuff off I should be hitting,\u201d Wells said. \u201cSo that awareness has helped allow me to be a little bit more accurate with the bat and the timing.\u201d<\/p>\n Boone has repeatedly referenced that work and how much better Wells looked after his IL stint over the last few months. While the backstop didn\u2019t get instant results after being activated on June 21, the manager immediately noticed a difference.<\/p>\n \u201cI felt like when he came back off the IL, it wasn\u2019t good yet, but I could see the move evolving and getting better,\u201d Boone said. \u201cThen he started to get a little bit of results, slowly but surely. But it was a process of getting to a point where he\u2019s getting a better load and getting into better hitting positions, ultimately to get his swing off. And we know he\u2019s a very capable offensive player. So it took a while, but I felt like the seeds of this were when he came off the IL.<\/p>\n \u201cIt looked better, and he\u2019s continued to get better, and he\u2019s been really good for us.\u201d<\/p>\n The Yankees have to hope that that continues, as Wells\u2019 relative rebound at the plate \u2014 he hit 21 homers last year and had an OPS over .700 the last two seasons \u2014 has lengthened a lineup that hasn\u2019t been at full strength for most of the season.<\/p>\n