Injury Concerns Arise as Yankees' Young Star Exits Game

Rising star Ben Rice left Saturday's game against the Tampa Bay Rays after being hit on the left elbow by an 88 mph slider. The team announced in the seventh inning that he was headed to a hospital to get X-rays and a CT scan. 

The pitch came from Rays reliever Manny Rodríguez in the fourth inning. Rice immediately dropped his bat and was attended to by the team's medical staff before exiting the game.

Prior to the game, the 26-year-old Rice was off to a strong start in the 2025 season, batting .292 with five home runs, nine RBIs, and two stolen bases over 65 at-bats, contributing to a .403 on-base percentage and a 1.003 OPS.

Rice was drafted by the Yankees in the 12th round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of Dartmouth College. 

Rice made his MLB debut on June 18, 2024, and quickly made an impact. Notably, on July 6, 2024, he became the first rookie in Yankees history to hit three home runs in a single game, tying Lou Gehrig's record for RBIs by a Yankees rookie in a game with seven. ​

He may have struggled the rest of 2204, finishing with a .171 batting average, but he became determined to make 2025 his breakout year. Rice showed up to camp having put on muscle and the power was already showing this season.