Yankees’ Austin Wells chasing different trophy as Rookie of the Year case improves: ‘It’s been a lot of fun’

With Austin Wells crushing a game-changing, three-run homer and tying his career-high with four RBI on Monday, Aaron Boone was asked if the catcher deserves strong consideration for the American League’s Rookie of the Year Award.

“Yes,” Boone said matter-of-factly and without further explanation after the Bombers’ 10-4 win over the Royals.

Told of Boone’s affirmation, Wells said, “That’s awesome.” However, he added that the hardware is not something he’s worried about with the season winding down.

“For me, winning the World Series, that’s really been my goal since the beginning of the year,” the 25-year-old told the Daily News on Tuesday.

Putting larger goals aside, Wells could become the first Yankees catcher to win Rookie of the Year since Thurman Munson took the honor home in 1970. Wells has a compelling case for the award, as his 3.6 fWAR was the highest among all American League rookies entering play on Wednesday. His 120 wRC+ ranked fourth.

Wells was also slashing .252/.342/.437 with 13 homers and 49 RBI. He’s been especially dominant as the Yankees’ cleanup man, hitting .310/.372/.531 with six dingers and 28 RBI over 29 games.

“He’s always been able to hit,” Boone said. “This is a guy that was drafted because he was a really good hitter. Ironically, it was the defense that came first at this level, in my view. And he hit into some tough luck a little bit early [in the season], was kind of splitting time [with Jose Trevino]. But he’s been a middle of the order hitter for two, three months now.”

As Boone alluded to, Wells has also made a difference on defense.

While he doesn’t have the strongest arm, Yankees pitchers enjoy throwing to the rookie after he got his feet wet in the majors last September. Wells has since blossomed into a trusted receiver; he ranked third among catchers in terms of Catcher Framing Runs (10) and 12^th with a 49% Strike Rate.

Wells also ranked in the 95^th percentile in Baseball Savant’s Fielding Run Value metric.

The fact that Wells has impacted both sides of the ball while playing one of the sport’s most demanding positions could bode well for him when ballots are cast for Rookie of the Year.

While Boston’s Wilyer Abreu and the Yankees’ Luis Gil are among the other rookies in the running, Baltimore’s Colton Cowser looks like Wells’ primary competition right now.

Entering Wednesday, Cowser was slashing .241/.324/.432 with a 3.5 fWAR and a 116 wRC+. All of those numbers trailed Wells, but Cowser had him beat with 20 homers, the most of any rookie, and 62 RBI.

Like Wells, Cowser has also made significant contributions on defense, recording 10 Outs Above Average while playing all three outfield positions. The 24-year-old, who has mostly manned left, also had one Defensive Run Saved and ranked in the 93^rd percentile for Fielding Run Value.

While Wells said he hasn’t kept tabs on the rest of baseball’s rookie class, he has noticed Cowser’s performance because the two played against each and occasionally talked Star Wars while in the minors over the last few years.

“I know he’s had a really good season so far,” Wells said.

He and Cowser still have some time to boost their Rookie of the Year cases, and an end-of-season showdown between the Yankees and Orioles will give voters a chance to compare the two side by side.

While Wells is focused on winning a different trophy and beating the O’s in a tight divisional race, he did say that he’s personally pleased with a season that’s seen him go from a platoon player with poor offensive numbers to a feared No. 4 hitter. That said, he’s not content with just a few regular season games left to play.

“We still got a couple weeks here to finish up strong, but from the beginning till now, it’s been a lot of fun,” Wells said. “I’m not satisfied, but definitely happy with the turn that’s happened.”

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