The New York Yankees are off to a record-setting start in the 2025 season, and one of the biggest early surprises is catcher and first baseman Ben Rice. With Giancarlo Stanton sidelined indefinitely, Rice has seized the opportunity to show he belongs in the Bronx—not just as a temporary fill-in, but potentially as a permanent fixture, even after Stanton returns.
While it doesn’t reflect the sentiment of the entire Yankees fanbase, some users on X have begun calling for Giancarlo Stanton to step aside and make room for Ben Rice. In their view, Rice’s strong early-season performances are making a compelling case.
Ben Rice turning heads with early power surge
Through the first week of the season, Ben Rice has been one of the most productive hitters in the Yankees’ lineup. After smashing five home runs during spring training and winning the designated hitter job in Stanton’s absence, Rice has carried that momentum into the regular season. He’s 5-for-10 with two home runs, a double, and exit velocities that shatter his previous career highs.
In fact, Ben Rice now owns nine of the 11 highest exit velocities of his professional career—all recorded in 2025, including a jaw-dropping 116.1 mph shot on March 14. There’s no mystery behind his power surge: Rice spent the offseason bulking up, and it’s paying off in loud contact.
“I think the ball’s coming off the bat harder, for sure,” Rice told the New York Post during spring training. “Putting more mass on the ball, so it’s going to come off harder.”
From fringe prospect to must-keep bat?
Rice, 26, was a 12th-round pick who broke out in the minors in 2023. He impressed analytic models with his elite swing decisions and his profile as a pull-heavy left-handed bat—a perfect match for Yankee Stadium’s short right-field porch. What makes his start even more impressive is that his Barrel rate (17.9%) ranks among the league’s best, ahead of sluggers like Michael Toglia and Tyler O’Neill, and he’s doing it while keeping his whiff rate lower than most power hitters on the list.
Before Stanton’s injury, Rice was likely headed back to Triple-A. Now, with his ability to square up fastballs and avoid chasing pitches out of the zone, he’s making a compelling case to stay—regardless of Stanton’s status.
And it’s not just the front office noticing. Yankees fans are already calling for Rice to remain in the lineup even when Stanton returns. Social media chatter has been filled with praise for Rice’s compact swing, hustle, and approach at the plate. For a team that has long struggled to find consistent left-handed power, Rice is starting to look like more than just a short-term fill-in—he’s becoming a fan favorite.
Stanton still without a return timeline
Stanton, meanwhile, is progressing slowly from tennis elbow in both arms. He began hitting in the cage last week and has received three rounds of platelet-rich plasma injections, but there’s no clear timetable for his return to game action. He admitted Tuesday he doesn’t know when a minor-league rehab assignment might begin—and more concerningly, he told reporters he’s still dealing with constant pain in both elbows.
The five-time All-Star remains one of the game’s premier power threats when healthy, but his frequent injuries and declining mobility have led the Yankees to treat his return cautiously. Even if Stanton does come back this month, the Yankees will face a difficult question: How do you take Ben Rice’s bat out of the lineup?
Ben Rice contributes to Yankees’ historic power display
The Yankees dropped their first game of the season on Tuesday, a 7–5 loss to the Diamondbacks, but the bats didn’t cool off. Rice crushed a solo homer in the ninth inning—his second of the year—and helped the Yankees make history.
According to OptaSTATS, New York became the first team in MLB history to have nine different players homer in the first four games of a season. Three of them—Anthony Volpe, Aaron Judge, and Jazz Chisholm Jr.—already have three apiece.
While much of the credit has gone to the new “torpedo” bats used by Judge, Chisholm, and others, Rice isn’t among those using the new model. His results have come the old-fashioned way—strength, timing, and a swing designed to punish mistakes.
What happens when Stanton returns?
Even if Stanton reclaims the DH role later this month, the Yankees now have a good problem. With Rice mashing right-handers and fitting the stadium’s dimensions so well, a platoon or bench role might not do justice to his production.
Rice still has holes in his game. He struggles against left-handed pitching, and his swing-and-miss tendencies haven’t disappeared completely. But for now, he looks like a player the Yankees need to keep in the mix—especially considering Stanton’s fragile health history and recent comments about lingering discomfort.
With so much of the Yankees’ early success tied to their power output—and with injuries always looming—the safest bet may be to keep Rice in the big leagues and build in flexibility around Stanton’s return.
The Yankees don’t just have a temporary replacement in Ben Rice. They may have found something more valuable: a long-term, low-cost, left-handed power bat who’s tailor-made for the Bronx.
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