Yankees’ Ben Rice News Emerges Amid MLB Playoffs

Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Yankees’ Ben Rice News Emerges Amid MLB Playoffs

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Tate Mosher | Last updated Oct 5, 2026 1:14 PM ET

After a sabermetrically elite 2025 season, all eyes were on New York Yankees first baseman/designated hitter Ben Rice to have a monster season in 2026. That is exactly what happened, with Rice having much better batted ball luck.

The 27-year-old was far and away New York’s best bat in the lineup this year with outfielder Aaron Judge playing just over a third of the season. Rice, a former 12th round draft pick, has proved to be a huge success for the Yankees’ prospect development system.

Had it not been for Rice, it is hard to imagine the Yankees would be playing in the ALDS currently. His hot hitting carried the team for much of the season, and his performance in the Wild Card round only reaffirmed that.

Before Game 2 of the ALDS at the Tampa Bay Rays on Monday, Rice was honored with an award nomination. Per Bryan Hoch of MLB.com, he has been listed as a finalist for the Hank Aaron Award.

Ben Rice has been named a finalist for the Hank Aaron Award, which recognizes the most outstanding regular season offensive performer in each league.
— Bryan Hoch ⚾️ (@BryanHoch) October 5, 2026

The award is given to the best hitter in each league, and the Yankee DH certainly belongs in such company. In 154 games this season, Rice slashed .264/.363/.534 (.897 OPS) with 41 home runs and 97 RBIs.

As for American League ranks, he rates highly in many important categories. Rice is fourth in home runs, second in slugging percentage and third in OPS. After a rough rookie season in 2024, it is hard to imagine anybody thought he would reach these heights in 2026.

New York Yankees designated hitter Ben Rice (22) Brad Penner-Imagn Images

While Rice is near the top in most statistical hitting categories, he admittedly is a long shot to win the award. For instance, Houston Astros’ slugger and MVP favorite Yordan Alvarez outperformed the 27-year-old by a good margin in many categories.

Rice also has ALDS opponent Junior Caminero of the Rays to contend with as well. They had extremely similar seasons offensively to the point where it is essentially a toss-up for who had the better year.

That ALDS continues Monday with Game 2 (Rays lead 1-0). The Yankees will hand the ball to right-handed ace Cam Schlittler (14-6, 1.95 ERA) while the Rays are going with their right-hander Freddy Peralta (10-11, 4.42).

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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