Aug 11, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees catcher Ben Rice (22) tosses his bat after hitting a solo home run against the Minnesota Twins during the third inning at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Yankees Rising Star Making Case for Catcher Job

Originally posted on New York Yankees on SI
By Erin Shapland | Last updated Aug 13, 2025 7:00 AM ET

The New York Yankees have been putting Ben Rice behind the plate more often lately, and for good reason. With a .786 OPS this season, Rice has been one of the Yankees' most reliable bats, and it appears that the tide is turning in his favor.

Rice has been the Yankees catcher for their last three games, which drove an uptick in speculation that he might be slowly replacing current starting catcher Austin Wells.

Chris Kirschner of the Athletic pointed out that Rice has the makings of a top-10 hitter, and the Yankees should utilize him like one.

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"There are two ways the Yankees can maximize Rice’s playing time: start him at first base when there’s a right-handed pitcher on the mound, or increase his starts behind the plate to supplant the struggling Austin Wells," Kirschner wrote. "As Wells’ offensive woes continue to pile up, the latter option is looking increasingly compelling."

"At the beginning of the season, when Rice was mainly getting at-bats as the Yankees’ designated hitter and first baseman, catching coordinator Tanner Swanson said he believed Rice could start for at least a third of MLB teams," Kirschner went on to say. "Behind the scenes, the Yankees were having Rice catch bullpens and slowly working him into lopsided games behind the plate. He’s now showing he could handle a bigger workload."

The 26 year old was promoted to the majors with the Yankees in 2024. From Massachusetts originally, Rice became the first rookie in Yankees history to hit three home runs in one game — a feat he accomplished against his home state Boston Red Sox on July 6 last season. Now in his second MLB season, Rice is making a positive impression for his consistency, and may ultimately take over as the Yankees' go-to catcher as Wells continues to struggle.

Wells has struggled to produce offensively for months, and now finds himself among the league's worst bats with the sixth-worst batting average in the league (.085) against sliders. Naturally, opposing pitchers have adjusted their strategy against Wells, and he is seeing more and more sliders, compounding his existing struggles. Arguably the better catcher, Wells might just take a backup catcher role as the Yankees shuffle their roster around in the hopes of righting the ship.

Rice was among the first to say that the Yankees could use a "sense of urgency" regarding their recent failures as a team, and the honesty was a breath of fresh air to Yankee fans who had gotten used to the front office's business-as-usual patter. Just holding onto their third-place AL East Wild Card spot, it's these kinds of moves that might see the Yankees hang on for the postseason after all.

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