New York Yankees' Rookie’s Secret to Hitting Success Revealed

One aspect of Yankees rookie Ben Rice's hitting is causing a stir.

Jun 19, 2024; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees first baseman Ben Rice (93) at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports / Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports

It hasn’t taken long for New York Yankees rookie Ben Rice to impress at the plate. 

Despite the 25-year-old only having 40 career MLB plate appearances, one aspect of his hitting approach has peers, coaches, and even rival scouts feeling bullish about his potential. 

A July 2 article from the New York Post’s Dan Martin noted how Rice’s plate presence and discipline are exceptional for someone with his service time. 

“He has a calm presence at the plate, which you can’t teach,” one anonymous AL Scout said of Rice. “He showed it in the minors, but it doesn’t always translate here.”

Rice’s MLB stats support this sentiment. While it may be a small sample size, the rookie’s 12.5% strikeout percentage is the lowest on the Yankees. His walk rate of 15% is third on the team, behind only Juan Soto (who’s famous for his extraordinary eye) and AL MVP favorite Aaron Judge. 

Kevin Reese, Yankees’ vice president of player development, also praised Rice’s mature plate approach.

“Since we’ve had him here, one of his calling cards has been strike-zone discipline,” Reese said of Rice. “Some guys are really good at laying off pitches out of the zone and some guys are really good at swinging at pitches in the zone. Not many guys combine those things and swing at all the right pitches. Soto is probably the best at that and Ben has done a nice job of that.”

Even Judge himself commended the quality of Rice’s at-bats. 

“It’s just impressive at-bat after impressive at-bat,” the 2022 AL MVP said of Rice. “We saw what he was doing in the minor leagues and it’s really translating well up here.”

Rice is currently slashing .273/.375/.708 with no home runs and two RBIs with the Yankees. He just missed his first career homer on Sunday in Toronto, but settled for a double off the wall. Rice is hitting .316 with a .831 OPS in his last seven games, which is a promising sign.

While his power isn’t quite there yet, Rice's career .523 slugging percentage in the minors, as well as his15 home runs in 60 minor league games this year suggests that he'll soon be sending balls over Yankee Stadium’s short porch in right field.