The Yankees tried to downplay it, but there was an intriguing scene on the infield at Yankee Stadium more than four hours before the Subway Series finale.
Yankees try Ben Rice at third base
Ben Rice — the odd man out of Sunday night’s lineup against the Mets — spent several minutes fielding ground balls at third base alongside backup catcher J.C. Escarra. The drills were led by infield coach Travis Chapman.
Manager Aaron Boone told the New York Post not to “necessarily read anything into it,” while Rice explained he was “just doing it for fun right now.” Still, the former catcher has already adapted well to his position switch from behind the plate to first base.
With starting third baseman Oswaldo Cabrera and second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. both on the injured list, giving Rice some reps at third base may be a low-risk move to test his versatility — at least as an emergency option.
“He took ground balls at second, short, third, first — just getting his feet moving,” Chapman told the Post before the game. “I like putting him in a position where he has to be more athletic with his feet. He’s got some athleticism, so we’ve started moving him around a bit, just experimenting.”
With Paul Goldschmidt entrenched at first base and Trent Grisham getting regular playing time in center field between Aaron Judge and either Cody Bellinger or Jasson Domínguez, Rice — 26 — has logged 131 of his 160 plate appearances this season as the team’s designated hitter.
That could change when veteran slugger Giancarlo Stanton returns from the 60-day injured list. He has resumed facing live pitching, and there is growing optimism he could be back in the coming weeks.
Domínguez served as the designated hitter on Sunday, leaving Rice on the bench.
Escarra, 30, originally came up as an infielder before converting to catcher. He made 19 appearances at third base last season in the Yankees’ minor league system and has already played one game at the hot corner for the big league club this year.
“Just trying to keep that tool sharp,” Escarra said. “I don’t want to be a guy who can’t play other positions — I’ve always taken pride in my versatility. I’ll be ready for whatever they need.”
