Considering the highly-decorated history of the New York Yankees, setting franchise records of any kind are difficult to do. Yet Ben Rice did just that on Saturday.
The young first baseman became the first rookie in Yankees history to homer three times in a single game, doing so while driving in seven to help his team snap a four-game losing streak in a 14-4 win over the Boston Red Sox.
To do so in a rivalry game is one thing, but it is extra sweet for Rice, who grew up in Red Sox country in Cohasset, MA, and once signed Fenway Park’s famed Pesky Pole with “Yankees Rule.”
“Definitely a day I will never forget,” Rice said. “Pumped it was a big-time win for us over my hometown team.”
Entering Saturday with just one home run in his first 46 MLB at-bats, Rice led the game off with a shot to right that hooked just inside the foul pole and into the second deck off Boston starter Josh Winckowski. He followed it up with a no-doubter of a three-run round-tripper off reliever Chase Anderson to punctuate a seven-run fifth inning that helped put the Yankees out of sight.
In the seventh, he got Anderson again, lasering another three-run shot to right-center for his third of the afternoon.
Uncertain of what to do in the spotlight, Rice did not recognize a boisterous Yankee Stadium imploring for a curtain call. When his teammates told him what was happening, he struggled to figure out where to go to oblige their requests.
“It was all happening so fast,” Rice said. “I think I was still coming off the high of hitting the home run. I was just walking through the dugout and then I heard everyone yelling at me to do something… Thankfully, got it in. That was pretty awesome.”
There have now been 36 instances in Yankees history in which a player has hit three home runs in a game. It is a list that consists of some of the greatest to ever play the game: Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle, and Aaron Judge. Yet none of them did it when they were a rookie.
“That’s pretty cool to know,” Rice said. “Obviously, it’s humbling to be a part of an organization with as many legends as we have.”
His big day continues a promising start to his MLB career, which was sparked after starting first baseman Anthony Rizzo hit the injured list last month. In 17 games, Rice is batting .294 with a .972 OPS, four home runs, seven extra-base hits, and 12 RBI.
“Just trusting my approach. Just trusting it,” he said on his solid start to life in the majors. “I have a lot of confidence in my approach and up here is no different. The game hasn’t changed. The bases are all in what the same sha allowed me to hit the ground running here.”
