Ben Rice spent Tuesday’s wild-card opener against his hometown Red Sox on the bench.
He didn’t wait long to make his presence felt in Game 2.
Rice became the first Yankee to homer in his first postseason plate appearance since Shane Spencer did it in the 1998 ALDS against Texas when he took Boston right-hander Brayan Bello deep for a two-run shot to right to spark a 4-3 win, as the Yankees forced a Game 3 at the Stadium.
“Coming off of a loss [Tuesday], to kind of set the tone for us in the first inning, to get us out to a lead felt really good,’’ Rice said of his first-pitch homer.
It came after the lefty-swinging Rice didn’t play in Game 1, with Aaron Boone going with Paul Goldschmidt at first base and Austin Wells behind the plate with Red Sox southpaw Garrett Crochet on the mound.
“I know my role and [Tuesday] my role was to be ready for a big at-bat off the bench,” Rice said. “And [Wednesday], I was starting. The approach doesn’t change. I’m just going to be prepared for every at-bat I get and every chance I get.”
That’s part of what’s impressed his teammates since Rice arrived in The Bronx.
“He hits the ball hard every single time he gets up there,” Aaron Judge said. “He has great at-bats and knows what he’s looking for. When he gets his pitch, he doesn’t miss.”
Rice did that again in the third, when he came close to giving the Yankees another lead after Boston tied the game in the top of the inning.
With runners on second and third and two out, Rice turned on a pitch from left-hander Justin Wilson and hit a 109 mph rocket, but it went right at Nate Eaton in right field to end the threat.
“I have had a good amount of those this year,’’ Rice said. “So I figured I, honestly, hit it a little too hard, so it ended up going right at them. Obviously when you square one up, you think it’s going to be a hit. But I saw that he basically didn’t have to move to catch it. That was tough.”
A win erased that, though, and Rice’s postseason debut ended with a victory.
For Rice, who grew up a Yankees fan despite being a native of Cohasset, Mass., it was an ideal start to his postseason career.
“It was unbelievable,’’ Rice said. “So cool. One, to be a part of the rivalry now, just given where I’m from and where I grew up and all that, just makes it all that much more special.”
And after emerging as one of the best Yankees hitters this season, Aaron Boone and his staff have to decide how to use him — even when they’re facing a lefty.
“Benny is playing [and] swinging the bat so well, especially down the stretch, he makes it tough,’’ Boone said of his thought process in putting postseason lineups together.
Rice is making it a good problem to have.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
