Yankees fans should believe Ben Rice's breakout is for real this season
This has been exactly what Yankees fans were hoping to see from Rice this year.
Yankees fans should believe Ben Rice's breakout is for real this season originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here . While the Major League Baseball season is only just underway, some clear storylines are forming for the year.
For the New York Yankees , the biggest storyline is the breakout of Ben Rice. He was already great last season, but he's taking his play to a new level in 2026. Amid such a breakout, MLB.
com's Bryan Hoch is calling for Yankees fans to believe this breakout is for real, and that Rice is a future All-Star, and a lefty-hitting counterpart to Aaron Judge on the right side of the plate. Yankees fans should believe in Ben Rice's breakout "Yankees: Ben Rice is a future All-Star," Hoch writes. "The next step in Rice's development will come with increased opportunities against left-handed pitching.
" Rice had a . 255 batting average and an . 836 OPS across 138 games last season.