When New York Yankees first baseman Anthony Rizzo was sidelined with an arm fracture back in June, rookie Ben Rice suddenly found himself with a big opportunity and delivered promising results, but now with him struggling and Rizzo working his way back, the team has a big decision to make going forward.
Anthony Rizzo still has some time before his return
The latest updates on Rizzo indicate that there is still some time before he will be back on the field. According to Yankees manager Aaron Boone, the 35-year-old first baseman “still has a ways to go” in his recovery, but has progressed to swinging a bat lightly (h/t MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch).
Prior to Rizzo’s injury, he was having a rough 2024 campaign, batting just .223 with eight home runs and an OPS of .630. In his last 30 games, he was batting just .175 and owned a slugging percentage of .228 with just one home run over that span. The arm fracture was the cherry on top of a horrific season for him.
Ben Rice has cooled off after his strong start
Rice took advantage of his newfound opportunity early, hitting five home runs in his first 19 games including a memorable three-homer game against the Boston Red Sox on July 6. However, it has been a struggle for him ever since, as entering play on Thursday he is hitting just .129 (8-for-62) since July 10 and has struck out 24 times in that span.
While Rice has demonstrated great power and solid plate discipline, he clearly is pressing more at the plate, and a trip to the minor leagues to help refine some of his mechanics could benefit him long-term. After all, he could end up being the Yankees starting first baseman on Opening Day next season, so they may want him to fix some things in order to become a crucial part of the lineup.
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It is unlikely that Rizzo or Rice would assume a bench role
The issue that comes into play is that DJ LeMahieu – who has struggled mightily all year – is essentially the Yankees’ backup first baseman, and while he is easily replaceable, it is unlikely that the Yankees would want to stash Rizzo or Rice on the bench. With Rizzo’s health remaining a concern the rest of the way, they’re going to have to think carefully about who they will want to be their starting first baseman for the rest of the year and into the playoffs.
On one hand, the Yankees could employ the same strategy with Rice that they did with Anthony Volpe last season, which is basically having the player play through the struggles and hope that they make adjustments as they continue to develop in the majors. The only downside to experimenting with that is that it could have the potential to create another black hole in the infield, as that position group has been mostly underwhelming all season long.
At the same time, Rizzo has to turn things around when or if he returns, as the level at which he was playing at prior to his injury is not acceptable for a team that has World Series aspirations. In the meantime, the Yankees will be relying on Rice to at least get them through August with the hope that he can break out of his prolonged slump and fill in nicely at first base. When the time comes, the Yankees will have a very difficult decision to make.
