Rice ties Yankees record in win over Red Sox

As a kid growing up in the heart of Red Sox territory, Ben Rice once journeyed from Cohasset, Mass., to Fenway Park, where he stealthily etched “Yankees Rule!” onto the iconic Pesky Pole in right field. Now Rice has had his moment of glory on Saturday. The Yankees snapped a four-game losing streak with a resounding 14-4 victory over the Red Sox, thanks to Rice’s phenomenal three-home-run performance, which earned him his first Yankee Stadium curtain call.

“It’s definitely a day I’ll never forget,” Rice said, brimming with excitement. “I’m just pumped that it was a big-time win for us, a good bounceback win, and over my hometown team. So it’s pretty cool.” Rice, a rookie catcher and first baseman, started the first inning with a bang, hitting his second career home run off Josh Winckowski, and later added a three-run blast in the fifth inning off Chase Anderson during a seven-run rally for the Bombers.

Ranked as the Yankees’ number twelve prospect by MLB Pipeline, Rice capped his seven-RBI game with another three-run homer off Anderson in the seventh. The 25-year-old Rice became the first rookie in Yankees history to hit three home runs in a single game. “What a game,” manager Aaron Boone remarked. “To set the tone right away in the first inning with a homer and then put together a legendary day, it’s just really big time. But it’s in line with the at-bats he’s been giving.”

With guidance from his teammates, Rice was led to the top steps of the dugout, where he acknowledged the cheering fans with a beaming smile and a wave of his helmet. “Honestly, it was all happening so fast,” Rice recalled. “I think I was still just 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. I didn’t even know what they were talking about, but as they slowly guided me toward the steps, I was like, ‘Oh, dude. A curtain call. That’s pretty cool.’”

The Yankees have seen 26 three-homer performances in the regular season, with Aaron Judge being the most recent last September. Rice’s seven RBIs tied him with Lou Gehrig’s rookie record set in 1925 and made him the third rookie in MLB history to hit three home runs from the leadoff spot, joining Andrew McCutchen and Mike Yastrzemski. “We heard a lot of good things about that guy, and he showed it today,” said teammate Oswaldo Cabrera. “He’s always smiling. He’s enjoying the game all the time.”

Rice was promoted from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre less than three weeks ago to fill in for the injured Anthony Rizzo. Initially slated to platoon with veteran J.D. Davis at first base, Rice’s impressive .294 batting average, .383 on-base percentage, and .588 slugging percentage in 17 games have earned him more playing time. “You try to stay in the moment with him, because I think the catching part of it is real, too,” Boone said. “That’s not the need right now, but he’s getting a ton of opportunities. It’s a great opportunity in front of him. We’re excited about what he’s doing, but I also don’t want to rush him too much.”

Gerrit Cole, who struck out eight over 4.1 innings, supported Rice’s historic day, though he faced some trouble from Rafael Devers, who homered and singled off him. Despite the challenge, Cole was all smiles when discussing Rice’s magical performance. “We’re going through it, so we’ll take any kind of success,” Cole said. “Really, I think it’s a little bit greater than that. It’s a historical day, a magical day. And to be honest, I’m pretty thankful that I get to be on the lineup card because I know he’ll remember it forever.”