CLEVELAND – The New York Yankees will have a different appearance on Thursday in Game 3 of the American League Championship Series against the Cleveland Guardians.

Jon Berti will start at first base for Anthony Rizzo, while Jose Trevino will replace Austin Wells behind the plate.

The Yankees, who have a 2-0 series lead, will face the Guardians' Matthew Boyd – the first left-hander to start in this series against New York – and manager Aaron Boone said the changes are typical divisions – Rizzo and Wells are left-handed; Berto and Trevino are right-handed.

However, there were other factors.

Rizzo, for example, has two broken fingers on his right hand, an injury he sustained on September 28th. After missing the AL Division Series, he went 3-for-8 with a walk in the first two games of the ALCS. Berti, who will start sixth on Thursday, went 2 for 7 with a walk in two ALDS games and played strong defense at first base, having never played that position in a regular season or playoff game in his career had played.

“I just liked how he looked in the division series. I love the dynamic he brings,” Boone said of Berti. “Now Riz gives me pause just because he looks so good, but I still want to keep an eye on what he's playing with and what he's going through, and I feel like a lot of that is also because of the confidence, that I also have in Jon and what he has.”

Wells, meanwhile, has struggled to perform the last six weeks after a strong summer landed him in AL Rookie of the Year contention. He's batting just .104 with an OPS of .369 in 109 plate appearances since September 1st. He is 2-for-24 with 10 strikeouts and two walks in the playoffs.

“I think he's locked in and he's obviously had a little trouble, but I really don't think he's necessarily feeling it,” Boone said. “I think he’s still playing at a really high level. I think he's been great behind the plate, and even in that situation, I'm still very confident that he'll hit the right shot in a big situation.”

Trevino, an All-Star in 2022, lost the starting catcher spot to Wells after he was placed on the injured list in July with a left quad strain. He has not appeared in a game since the Yankees' regular season finale on September 29th. In September, he went 3-for-27 in eight starts.