The Dominican Republic under Federacion Dominicana de Beisbol president Juan Nunez enters a decisive stretch before the 2026 World Baseball Classic. Pool D at loanDepot Park runs March 6–11 against Israel, Venezuela, Nicaragua, and the Netherlands. The opener is March 6 at 7 p.m. ET versus Nicaragua.
All 47 games are scheduled to air in the United States across FOX, FS1, FS2, the FOX Sports App, FOX One, Tubi, and FOX Deportes in Spanish.
According to Jeff Duda of World Baseball Network on October 7, Daniel Santana of Diario Libre reported that New York Yankees catcher Austin Wells is being recruited by Dominican Republic general manager Nelson Cruz, with mutual interest to represent the nation in 2026.
Nelson Cruz is recruiting Austin Wells to play for the Dominican Republic at the 2026 WBC. There is mutual interest. He is by far the best defender behind the plate available for DR at the 2026 WBC https://t.co/h3iIxl6srp
— Jeff Duda (@INTLBaseball24) October 7, 2025
Enrique Rojas of ESPN Deportes also reported October 7 that Cruz views Wells as a possibility.
???? Nelson Cruz habló con Enrique Rojas de ESPN Digital sobre la posibilidad de contar con Austin Wells incorporándose a la escuadra dominicana para el Clásico Mundial de Béisbol.#MLBxESPN pic.twitter.com/owarKuNBR4
— ESPN.com.do???????? (@ESPN_DO) October 7, 2025
Wells is eligible through his mother’s Dominican heritage. He was selected 28th overall by the Yankees in the 2020 MLB Draft out of the University of Arizona and signed on June 25, 2020 for a 2.5 million dollar bonus. New York was eliminated Wednesday, October 8, 2025 by Toronto in the Division Series. From today, the catcher has roughly four months before provisional rosters harden for March. His representation is WME Sports, which will handle the standard insurance and logistics discussions if talks advance.
Catching Picture And Austin Wells Status
Fan reaction arrived first. r slash NYYankees circulated the report quickly, swinging from surprise to reminders of Wells’ maternal ties and a practical question about whether a left-handed bat at catcher helps the Dominican roster more than another right-handed option. Talkin Yanks and Talkin Baseball posts on Instagram produced similar threads about depth and usage, with Yainer Diaz, Agustin Ramirez, and Samuel Basallo mentioned most often. Sportskeeda rounded the skepticism into a headline and asked if there were better options. The conversation reflects a pattern. The Dominican has been overloaded almost everywhere. Catcher has required the most evaluation.
Wells’ postseason followed New York’s four-game exit to Toronto. He appeared in seven games and hit .227 slash .261 slash .227 over 22 at-bats with one run, five hits, three RBI, one walk, and six strikeouts. Behind the plate he caught 59 innings with 56 chances, 55 putouts, one assist, no errors, and two successful steals against him.
The 2025 regular season gives the fuller view. Wells played 126 games and hit .219 with 448 plate appearances, recording 88 hits, 22 doubles, one triple, 21 home runs, 71 RBI, five stolen bases, 30 walks, 118 strikeouts, and a .712 OPS while sharing time with Ben Rice and J C Escarra. Defensively he appeared in 122 games and started 112, catching 1,001 innings with 1,040 chances, 1,001 putouts, 36 assists, three errors, five double plays, and a .997 fielding percentage. He allowed five passed balls and threw out 22 of 65 attempted steals, a 25 percent caught stealing rate.
Within the Yankees’ 2025 offense, Wells ranked ninth in hits and walks, sixth in doubles, seventh in home runs, sixth in RBI, and fifth in strikeouts. The ledger includes two notable firsts. On March 27 versus Milwaukee he became the first Yankee to hit a leadoff home run on Opening Day and the first catcher in MLB history to do so. On May 6 against San Diego he hit his first career grand slam.
The Dominican depth chart at catcher remains open. History is straightforward. In 2006 and 2009 the position rotated among Ronny Paulino, Alberto Castillo, Miguel Olivo, and Juan Brito. The 2013 champions used Carlos Santana and Francisco Pena. In 2017 Welington Castillo was set to shoulder the work after Gary Sanchez withdrew late in camp. In 2023 it was Francisco Mejia and Sanchez. The rest of those rosters were full of star power. Catcher has been the seam to close.
