The hitter with the highest OPS in baseball through the first three weeks of the season started Tuesday on the Yankees bench for the third time in the past five games.
And yet, Aaron Boone insists there is a method to what much of the fan base sees as madness in starting Paul Goldschmidt over the red-hot Ben Rice, even after the Yankees said this offseason the young first baseman would get the chance to play against more lefties this year.
Boone came into this series against the Angels planning to start Rice on Tuesday against lefty Reid Detmers, who has more neutral splits than lefty Yusei Kikuchi, who started Monday’s game. But in the past two games against lefties, Rice proved to be a valuable bat to fire off the bench in important spots, which Boone decided he liked enough to have him in that role again Tuesday.
“I’ve just been able to so aggressively use Benny [off the bench],” Boone said before Tuesday’s game. “Even though he’s not in the starting lineup, I view him playing a major [role]. In the last two games he’s sat against a lefty, he’s got [four] at-bats — homer, walk, single. I’ve been able to kind of fire him at the most important part, and it might be early in the game.
“He is going to play against lefties.”
Ben Rice of the New York Yankees hitting a single. Getty Images
The Yankees only faced one lefty starter in their first 11 games before seeing four in the six games since. Rice has only started against one lefty (1-for-3 against the Athletics’ Jeffrey Springs) while taking nine more plate appearances against lefty relievers, going 3-for-11 (.273) with a .606 OPS, one walk and five strikeouts against southpaws. Overall, he entered Tuesday leading the majors with a 1.253 OPS while batting .362 with four home runs in 15 games
Rice was out of Friday’s lineup against Rays lefty Steven Matz, then pinch hit for Goldschmidt in the eighth inning against righty Hunter Bigge and crushed a homer that brought the Yankees within 5-3. Then on Monday, after Goldschmidt started against Kikuchi, Rice pinch hit for Amed Rosario in the fifth inning against righty reliever Shaun Anderson and drew a walk on the way to a three-run rally
“Because Goldy brings such a powerful presence at the top of the order against lefties, I just want to keep that going as well,” Boone said. “But having the ability to cherry-pick when I fire Benny Rice in a big spot, I like that.”
One way to get Rice and Goldschmidt in the lineup against lefties would be to have Rice catch and have Austin Wells on the bench, but Boone said he is not yet ready to have him play a full game there because he did not start any games behind the plate this spring — the Yankees wanted him to get as many reps as possible at first base — and needs to build up that workload still.
As he did this spring, Rice has continued to catch occasional bullpen sessions and some live batting practice sessions — including three innings with Carlos Rodón on Monday — but having him start at catcher is not yet an option.
“I feel like we’ll get there,” Boone said, “but want to keep the focus on a lot of his first base work as well.
“Want to be smart, too, with how we do it back there and when we do it, just because of how valuable he is and what we see him becoming as an offensive player.”
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Asked if there was a concern about catching affecting Rice’s offense, Boone acknowledged, “maybe a little bit,” but also thought he handled it well last season after the Yankees started to mix him in behind the plate in June. The 27-year-old went on to start 26 games at catcher after essentially building up to nine innings in games.
Rice has said the best way for him to get better at handling left-handed pitching is by actually facing it in games, though the Yankees are trying to balance that with using their best righty bats against lefties — at least to start games.
“Just because I have been able to use him so much in these games, being early, that’s why I lean this way,” Boone said.