Tyler Austin Wells (born August 26, 1994) is an American professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

for the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East Division. As one of the America ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2021.

Amateur career

Wells attended

University High School University High School may refer to: Australia * University High School, Melbourne, Victoria Canada * University Hill Secondary School, Vancouver, British Columbia United States Arizona * University High School (Tolleson) * University High Sc ...

Morgantown, West Virginia Morgantown is a city in Monongalia County, West Virginia, United States, and its county seat. It is situated along the Monongahela River in North Central West Virginia and is the home of West Virginia University. The population was 30,347 at the 2 ...

as a freshman and sophomore before transferring to

Yucaipa High School Yucaipa High School is a public high school in Yucaipa, California, United States that serves the cities of Yucaipa and Calimesa and the community of Oak Glen, 65 miles east of Los Angeles. History The original Yucaipa High School campus is ...

Yucaipa, California Yucaipa ( Serrano: ''Yukaipa't'') is a city located east of San Bernardino, in San Bernardino County, California, United States. The population was 54,542 at the 2020 census, up from 51,367 at the 2010 census. Yucaipa has the distinction of ...

. As a junior in 2012, he went 8–0 with a 0.84 ERA. In 2013, as a senior, he had a 0.28 ERA. Undrafted out of high school in the

2013 Major League Baseball draft The 2013 Major League Baseball draft was held from June 6 through June 8, 2013. The first two rounds were broadcast from Studio 42 of the MLB Network in Secaucus, New Jersey. Each team received one selection per round, going in reverse order of ...

, Wells enrolled at

California State University, San Bernardino California State University, San Bernardino (Cal State San Bernardino or CSUSB) is a public research university in San Bernardino, California. Founded in 1965, it is part of the California State University system. The main campus sits on in th ...

where he played

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played by Student athlete, student-athletes at institutions of higher education. In the United States, college baseball is sanctioned mainly by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA); in Japan, ...

for the

Coyotes The coyote (''Canis latrans''), also known as the American jackal, prairie wolf, or brush wolf, is a species of canine native to North America. It is smaller than its close relative, the gray wolf, and slightly smaller than the closely relat ...

. In 2014, as a freshman at CSUSB, Wells appeared in 11 games (eight starts), going 1–5 with a 4.30 ERA, and as a sophomore in 2015, he went 2–4 with a 4.93 ERA in 12 starts. Wells broke out as a junior in 2016, pitching to a 4–7 record with a 2.84 ERA in 15 starts.

Professional career

Minnesota Twins

After the season, Wells was selected by the

Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The team is named afte ...

in the 15th round of the

2016 Major League Baseball draft The 2016 Major League Baseball draft began on June 9, 2016, to assign amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The draft order is the reverse order of the 2015 MLB season standings. In addition, compensation picks were distributed for players who ...

. Wells made his professional debut with the

Elizabethton Twins The Elizabethton Twins were a Minor League Baseball team of the Appalachian League and a Rookie-level affiliate of the Minnesota Twins. They were located in Elizabethton, Tennessee, and were named for their Major League Baseball, major league aff ...

, going 5–2 with a 3.23 ERA in ten starts. He spent 2017 with the

Cedar Rapids Kernels The Cedar Rapids Kernels are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins. They are located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and play their home games at Veterans Memorial Stadium (Cedar Rapids), Veter ...

, going 5–3 with a 3.11 ERA in 14 starts, and began 2018 with the

Fort Myers Miracle The Fort Myers Mighty Mussels are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins. They are located in Fort Myers, Florida, and play their home games at the Lee County Sports Complex at ...

where he was named a

Florida State League The Florida State League (FSL) is a Minor League Baseball league based in the state of Florida. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following ...

All-Star before being promoted to the

Chattanooga Lookouts The Chattanooga Lookouts are a Minor League Baseball team of the Southern League and the Double-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. They are based in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and are named for nearby Lookout Mountain. The team plays its home g ...

in July, where he finished the season. In 22 games (21 starts) between the two clubs, Wells went 10–6 with a 2.49 ERA and a 0.96 WHIP. Wells began 2019 with the

Pensacola Blue Wahoos The Pensacola Blue Wahoos are a Minor League Baseball team of the Southern League (1964–present), Southern League and the Double-A (baseball), Double-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins. They are based in Pensacola, Florida, and play their home ga ...

, but underwent

Tommy John surgery Ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction, sometimes referred to as Tommy John surgery is a surgical graft procedure where the ulnar collateral ligament in the medial elbow is replaced with either a tendon from elsewhere in the patient's body, ...

in May, forcing him to miss the remainder of the season. Wells did not play a minor league game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season caused by the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

Baltimore Orioles

On December 10, 2020, Wells was selected by the

in the

Rule 5 draft The Rule 5 draft is a Major League Baseball (MLB) player draft that occurs each year in December, at the annual Winter Meeting of general managers. The Rule 5 draft aims to prevent teams from stockpiling too many young players on their minor lea ...

. In 2021, he made the Opening Day roster. On April 4, 2021, Wells made his MLB debut in relief against the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...

, pitching a scoreless ninth inning. On June 2, Wells earned his first career major league victory, pitching three scoreless innings giving up only one hit against the

. On September 5, Wells earned his first career save after pitching a perfect ninth inning in an 8-7 win over the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...

. Wells missed time during the season due to wrist and shoulder injuries, but still pitched 57 innings in relief in which he went 2-3 with a 4.11 ERA and 65 strikeouts. Wells began the 2022 season in Baltimore's

starting rotation This is an alphabetical list of selected unofficial and specialized terms, phrases, and other jargon used in baseball, along with their definitions, including illustrative examples for many entries. 0–9 0 :"Oh and ..." See count. 1 ...

, where he made 23 starts and pitched to a 4.25 ERA in . Wells began the season in the Orioles bullpen, where he pitched five shutout innings in a winning effort against the Texas Rangers after an injury to starter Kyle Bradish. He would then be moved to the starting rotation, where he made an immediate impact as the Orioles best starting pitcher in the first half of the season. He pitched to a 3.18 ERA, striking out 103 batters in innings. After surpassing his career-high in innings pitched before the All-Star break, Wells struggled in his three starts in the second half, allowing 11 earned runs in just nine innings. He was sent down to Double-A

Bowie Baysox The Chesapeake Baysox are a Minor League Baseball team located in Bowie, Maryland. They are the Double-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles, and play in the Eastern League. Their home ballpark is Prince George's Stadium. From 1993 to 2024, th ...

, where he made three starts before being moved to Triple-A

Norfolk Tides The Norfolk Tides are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. They are located in Norfolk, Virginia, and are named in nautical reference to the city's loc ...

. There, he appeared in seven games before being recalled to the Orioles. Wells made three scoreless relief appearances, including earning his fifth career save in a 2-0 win over the Red Sox on September 28 that clinched the Orioles' first AL East title since 2014 and secured the franchise's first 100-win season since 1980. In 2024, Wells made three starts for Baltimore, recording a 5.87 ERA with 13 strikeouts across innings pitched. On May 31, 2024, it was announced that Wells would undergo season–ending surgery to repair damage to his

ulnar collateral ligament Ulnar collateral ligament (or UCL) may refer to: * Ulnar carpal collateral ligament * Ulnar collateral ligament of elbow joint The ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) or internal lateral ligament is a thick triangular ligament at the medial aspec ...

Personal life

Wells is married to his wife, Melissa. They have a son.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wells, Tyler 1994 births Living people Aberdeen IronBirds players Baltimore Orioles players Baseball players from San Bernardino County, California Bowie Baysox players Cal State San Bernardino Coyotes baseball players Cedar Rapids Kernels players Chattanooga Lookouts players Elizabethton Twins players Fort Myers Miracle players Gulf Coast Twins players Major League Baseball pitchers Norfolk Tides players People from Yucaipa, California