After months of performing above expectations, New York Yankees rookie catcher Austin Wells has weathered his first extended slump. It seemed like he figured it out when he was moved to the mop-up spot in the order during the regular season, but the past month has been a real struggle for him.

Yankees’ Austin Wells has been in trouble for a while

In the last 15 games of the regular season, Wells hit .083 (4-for-48) with 13 strikeouts and no homeruns. His last home run came on September 9 against the Kansas City Royals. Those struggles continued into the postseason, as he went 2-for-20 (.100) with a .282 OPS in his first playoffs, striking out in 36.4% of his plate appearances.

Wells earned the mop-up spot during the season after performing very well, and he seemed to add tremendous depth to the lineup while also serving as strong protection behind Juan Soto and Aaron Judge. However, his struggles not only affect him from an individual standpoint, but are also critical to the team’s issues with runners in scoring.

So far in the postseason, the Yankees are hitting only 6-for-42 (.143) with runners in scoring position. In Monday’s Game 1 ALCS win over the Guardians, New York went 0-for-7 with RISP despite putting guys in scoring position in each of the first three innings.

Wells’ troubles clearing are partially responsible for Aaron Judge’s slow playoffs

Wells’ issues are also part of the reason why Judge has endured a tough postseason thus far. With Judge not having the proper protection behind him in the lineup, the eventual MVP has had to adjust his approach at the plate, which has meant chasing more boundary throws in hopes of making solid contact to drive in runs.

So far in the playoffs, Judge is hitting just .133 without a home run. He has struck out in six of his 22 at-bats and has really struggled to get going in October. While some have suggested that swapping Judge and Soto’s spots in the lineup would fix this, a simpler solution would be to move the collapsing Wells down the order and put the red-hot Giancarlo Stanton back in the mop-up spot.

Giancarlo Stanton is the answer in cleanup for the Yankees

Stanton has been the Yankees’ best hitter so far this postseason, hitting .368 with two home runs and a 1.244 OPS. He has spent most of the year at number five, but perhaps moving him back to the mop-up spot could provide the right protection for the Yankees’ two superstars.

Stanton is undoubtedly the most feared hitter on the team right now, so pitchers will want to prevent him from getting guys on base as much as possible. That could allow Judge to see better throws to drive, which could not only help him snap out of his playoff funk but also make the team’s offense more potent.

They have struggled to put up bad numbers in the play-offs so far, averaging just 3.8 runs per game. Their dominant pitching has been the focal point and is a big reason why they have been successful thus far despite the mediocre offense. Moving the struggling rookie from the mop-up spot in favor of the hot bat in Stanton could help them perform more often in run-scoring situations.

So far, Yankees manager Aaron Boone has not indicated whether he is considering making a lineup change ahead of Game 2 on Tuesday. However, it’s a move they should strongly consider if they want to continue their offense for the rest of the playoffs.