Yankees’ Austin Wells discusses battle with cervical headaches: ‘I didn’t really feel like myself’

Austin Wells doesn’t have one specific moment when his cervical headaches came about, the catcher has been feeling them for a while before it became too concerning for him to ignore.

Wells came forward this week, and the Yankees placed him on the IL on Saturday.

“I just felt a little off,” he told reporters following Sunday’s series-finale win. “I just didn’t really feel like myself to the point where I felt like I needed to say something to the trainers this week.”

The headaches and constant pressure at the top of his head during random parts of the day were two of the biggest factors that led to Wells coming forward the the training staff.

While Aaron Boone said on Saturday that the team has already ruled out the possibility of a concussion, they are still unsure what exactly is causing the headaches.

Wells himself feels that it’s simply the cumulative build-up from the first few months of the season, but he is set to undergo further testing on Monday to rule out anything too serious.

“I feel better already today,” he said Sunday. “I think we just need a couple of days off to let the brain catch up a bit, and then we’ll get back to work from there.”

The 26-year-old is hitting a career-worst .126 through 46 games this season.

Wells also has just one double, four homers, and .533 OPS to this point but he’s remained the regular behind the plate from the Yanks because of his defensive prowess.

When he does eventually return, he is planning on sticking with the hockey-style catchers mask that he used on Friday night in an effort to limit some of the wear and tear that comes with the position.

“Whatever was going on this year, it wasn’t really working,” Wells said. “I’ll try everything — I spoke with somebody else who got banged up and switched to that and they said they felt a big difference, so I thought I’d give it a try.”

Until he’s ready, though, the Yanks will have to lean on the duo of J.C. Escarra and Ali Sanchez behind the plate.

“Hopefully it’s short,” Boone said. “That’s the expectation.”