A hot start from Yankees' Ben Rice doesn't feel like a fluke this time

Soon after he was promoted last season, Ben Rice looked like a future star. In fact, in just his 17th game, he launched three home runs and drove in seven runs in a New York Yankees victory over the Boston Red Sox.

From that moment on, though, he really struggled, slashing .109/.203/.228 with three home runs and 11 RBI in his next 33 games of regular season action. He struggled so mightily to the point where he only played in one September game and did not make a single postseason appearance.

With the Yankees signing Paul Goldschmidt to a one-year deal this past offseason, there was reason to doubt whether Rice would even crack the team's Opening Day roster. Even if he had, with Goldschmidt playing first base, Austin Wells locked in as the team's starting catcher, and Giancarlo Stanton spending most days as the DH, Rice would have virtually nowhere to play.

Stanton's injury woes opened the door for Rice to serve as the Yankees' primary DH, and it's safe to say he took full advantage. He had a strong enough spring training to make the team, and has only looked better in the regular season.

Rice entered Monday's action slashing .298/.411/.638 with four home runs and six RBI in 14 games, hitting primarily at the top of the order. His numbers only look better now that he slugged his fifth home run of the year against 2024 AL Cy Young runner-up Seth Lugo.

Rice is raging hot, but some Yankees fans feel like they've seen this movie before. While it's hard to buy into a 14-game sample, his breakout certainly looks legitimate.

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Ben Rice's hot start certainly feels legitimate

So, yeah, this isn't Aaron Judge — it's Ben Rice. To say he has been crushing the ball would be an understatement.

Rice ranked in the 88th percentile or higher in virtually every batted ball metric, according to Baseball Savant entering Monday's game. To put it plainly, he is hitting the ball harder than anyone in the sport, including his MVP teammate.

Now, Rice is whiffing and striking out a good amount, and pitchers will eventually make adjustments that he's going to have to react to, but it's not as if he's getting lucky by finding holes through the infield. It's not even as if he's hitting cheap Yankee Stadium-aided home runs. His blast on Monday would've resulted in a home run in 29 of the 30 parks according to Baseball Savant, with Kauffman Stadium, ironically enough, as the lone exception.

Rice has to do this for a larger sample before fans fully buy in, understandably, but based on how hard he is hitting the ball now, Yankees fans should expect more positive results from a player who could very well be a key piece of the team's future.