He wasn't supposed to be there. Most Ivy League catchers don't find themselves hitting in the middle of a New York Yankees lineup during a pennant race, especially not after being a 12th-round draft pick. But if you pull up the Ben Rice Baseball Reference page, you're looking at more than just a collection of hits and outs; you're looking at a data-driven underdog story that almost didn't happen.
Baseball is weird.
One minute you’re a Dartmouth kid wondering if you’ll even get drafted because the Ivy League cancelled its 2021 season due to the pandemic. The next, you’re the first Yankees rookie in history to hit three home runs in a single game against the Boston Red Sox. That July afternoon at Yankee Stadium changed how fans viewed the "Rice-man," but it also sent people sprinting to their browsers to see if his minor league peripherals actually backed up the power surge.
Reading Between the Lines of the Ben Rice Baseball Reference Page
When you first look at Rice's MLB entry, the batting average might not jump off the screen and grab you. In fact, if you’re a casual fan, you might think he struggled. But that's the trap of modern baseball statistics. To really get what Ben Rice is as a hitter, you have to scroll down to the "Statcast" and "Advanced Scouting" sections that the Ben Rice Baseball Reference profile links to.
He hits the ball hard. Really hard.
His barrel rate and launch angle consistency during his 2024 debut showed a player who wasn't just getting lucky. He was consistently finding the "sweet spot" of the bat. For those who aren't stat nerds: a "barrel" is basically the perfect combination of exit velocity and launch angle. Rice’s ability to generate these at a high frequency is why the Yankees felt comfortable moving on from veteran options at first base.
The Ivy League factor is real too. It’s hard to overstate how much of a disadvantage it is to play in a cold-weather conference that doesn't get the scouting eyes of the SEC or the ACC. Rice had to prove himself in the Cape Cod League—baseball’s ultimate proving ground—to even get on the radar. He hit .331 there for the Cotuit Kettleers. That wasn't a fluke. It was a warning.
The Minor League Ascent
If you check the "Minor League Statistics" tab on his profile, the jump from 2022 to 2023 is staggering. He went from being a "filler" prospect to a "must-watch" name.
- In 2023, across three levels (A, A+, AA), he posted an OPS of 1.049.
- That isn't just "good." That is video game territory.
- He walked 44 times while striking out only 64 times in 73 games.
That specific walk-to-strikeout ratio is usually what the smartest scouts look for. It indicates a "mature" approach. He doesn't chase junk in the dirt. He waits for a pitcher to make a mistake in the zone and then he punishes it. Most rookies come up and swing at everything because they're nervous or trying too hard. Rice looked like he’d been there for a decade from day one.
The Three-Homer Game and the Historical Context
July 6, 2024. That’s the date etched into his permanent record. Most players go their whole lives without a three-homer game. Rice did it against the Red Sox.
If you look at his "Game Logs" on Ben Rice Baseball Reference, that single game accounts for a massive chunk of his rookie RBI total. It's an outlier, sure, but it proved his ceiling. He became the first rookie in Yankees history to have a three-home run game. Think about the names that have worn those pinstripes. Ruth. Gehrig. Mantle. Berra. DiMaggio. None of them did what the kid from Dartmouth did in his first few weeks.
But baseball is a game of adjustments. After that explosion, pitchers stopped throwing him fastballs in the heart of the plate. They started feeding him a steady diet of sliders away and sweeping curves. This is where the "splits" on his reference page become fascinating. You can see his performance dip against left-handed pitching, which is common for young left-handed hitters, but it’s the adjustment period that defines a career.
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Position Flexibility: Catcher vs. First Base
One of the most debated parts of Rice’s profile isn't his bat—it's his glove. On his Ben Rice Baseball Reference page, you’ll see him listed as "C/1B."
This is a huge deal for roster construction. Having a guy who can catch in an emergency but play an everyday first base provides a manager with massive flexibility. However, the defensive metrics (like Defensive Runs Saved or DRS) show he’s still a work in progress at first base. He was a catcher by trade. Transitioning to first base at the Major League level is like trying to learn to play the violin while performing at Carnegie Hall. It’s stressful. Every footwork mistake is magnified.
Honestly, some scouts wonder if he’ll ever go back to catching full-time. Probably not. The Yankees need his bat in the lineup every day, and catching is too taxing on the legs. If he can turn into an average defensive first baseman, his offensive upside makes him an All-Star caliber player.
Why the "Expected" Stats Matter More Than the Surface Stats
We have to talk about "Expected Weighted On-Base Average" or xwOBA. If you look at the Ben Rice Baseball Reference advanced dashboard, you’ll notice his "Expected" stats were often significantly higher than his "Actual" stats during his rookie campaign.
What does that mean? It means he was getting robbed.
He was hitting line drives right at people. He was hitting deep fly balls that would have been home runs in 20 other ballparks but were caught at the warning track in others. The math suggests that Rice's "bad luck" won't last forever. Over a 162-game season, those hard-hit balls eventually find holes. This is why analysts are still so high on him despite a batting average that might look mediocre at first glance.
Baseball is a long game. Rice is the type of player who rewards the patient fan. He isn't a "slap hitter" who relies on speed; he’s a "process" hitter who relies on physics.
Misconceptions About the Ivy League "Stigma"
There’s this weird idea that Ivy League players aren't "gritty" or that they lack the "tools" of players from big baseball schools like LSU or Vanderbilt. Rice effectively killed that narrative.
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When you look at his "Transactions" and "Bio" section, you see a kid who had to play for the Newport Gulls in the NECBL just to get seen. He wasn't handed a multi-million dollar signing bonus. He had to earn every single plate appearance. He’s part of a new wave of "smart" hitters who use data to optimize their swing. He understands his own hot zones. If you watch him in the dugout, he’s usually looking at an iPad, analyzing the release point of the opposing pitcher.
It’s not just talent; it’s application.
Comparison to Other Yankees First Basemen
How does he stack up? Let's look at the context. The Yankees have struggled to find stability at first base since Mark Teixeira retired. They’ve tried Greg Bird (injuries), Luke Voit (streaky), and Anthony Rizzo (veteran presence but aging).
Comparing Rice's first 100 plate appearances to Anthony Rizzo’s 2024 season on Ben Rice Baseball Reference shows a stark difference in power potential. While Rizzo offers elite defense and veteran leadership, Rice offers the "lightning in a bottle" that high-payroll teams need from their pre-arbitration players. You need cheap, productive talent to balance out the massive contracts of guys like Aaron Judge and Gerrit Cole. Rice fits that "efficiency" model perfectly.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Analysts
If you are tracking Ben Rice’s career, don't just look at the box score. The box score is a liar.
Instead, focus on these three things that actually predict his future success:
- Zone Contact Percentage: Is he swinging and missing at strikes? On his Reference page under "Advanced Batting," look at his K%. If it stays under 24%, he’s going to be an elite contributor.
- Pull Rate: Rice is at his best when he’s pulling the ball in the air. For a lefty at Yankee Stadium, the "short porch" in right field is a cheat code. If his pull rate drops, he’s likely overthinking his approach.
- Exit Velocity Floor: Not the "Max" exit velocity, but the average. A high floor means he’s consistently making solid contact even when he doesn't "square it up."
Ben Rice represents a shift in how the Yankees develop talent. They are looking for "high floor" hitters who don't beat themselves. Rice doesn't beat himself. He forces the pitcher to beat him.
To stay updated on his progress, you should regularly check the "Daily Matchups" and "Rolling Averages" on his Ben Rice Baseball Reference page. These graphs show you exactly when he’s starting to "see" the ball better before it even shows up in the home run column. Pay attention to his performance in high-leverage situations—that’s where you see the real temperament of a New York ballplayer. Rice has shown, time and again, that the bright lights don't bother him. He’s just there to hit.
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The data doesn't lie, even if it takes a while to tell the whole truth. Watch the exit velocity, ignore the batting average for now, and enjoy the rise of a player who defied the Ivy League odds.
Next Steps for Deep Analysis:
- Check the "Splits" tab on Baseball Reference to see how he performs in "Late & Close" situations; this reveals his value as a clutch hitter.
- Monitor his "Pitches per Plate Appearance" (P/PA) to see if he is successfully tiring out opposing starters.
- Review his defensive "Zone Rating" monthly to track his improvement at first base, which will dictate whether he remains an everyday starter or a platoon player.