Ben Rice crushed a go-ahead, two-run homer in the top of the ninth that propelled the Yankees to a 8-3 victory on Sunday.
Rice also added a single, and he’s now batting .293 with a .996 OPS for the season. It was his 19th home run of the year, putting him seventh in the majors through the middle of June. Rice has fully broken out in 2026, and he’s done it while maintaining catcher eligibility from last season. It doesn’t sound as if he’ll work behind the plate this year, but expect him to be one of the earliest first basemen drafted heading into 2027.