New York Yankees rookie Ben Rice is the ultimate baseball fan, and he is living the dream we all imagine while playing for his favorite team. After beginning the 2024 season in the minors, he got called up to the majors on July 18. Rice was promoted to replace one of the regulars and first baseman Anthony Rizzo, who suffered from a fractured forearm. For Rice, this promotion was not simply the next rank on the career ladder but a personal victory, as it felt like a dream come true.

He has been a regular and avid fan of the Yankees since his childhood, and he used to look up to Derek Jeter as his favorite role model. In an episode of the Foul Territory podcast that Rice recently did, the audience got a chance to see how profound the man’s fandom is! Reliving ‘that’ moment, he said, “In my childhood bedroom, there’s still a Derek Jeter poster. And it’s right next to the Yankees jersey that I wore in that first grade picture day,” he mentioned.

Ben Rice resided close to Boston and was encircled by supporters of the Boston Red Sox, yet he was able to display his admiration for Jeter by having a poster of him. He is an example of what any fan’s dream has been, to go from being a fan to donning the Yankees jersey.

However, despite this, there are instances that he has admitted that left him amazed. He remembers one such incident, his awkward curtain call! “I know what a curtain call is. I just didn’t know that’s what they were trying to get me to do. I think I was still just kind of.” He was uncertain of what to do when he received his first standing ovation at the Yankees stadium. The routines included ‘high-fiving’ the other team members and for him to grasp the ball; he had to move to the end of the dugout for his curtain call.

The host then asked him if he had blacked out at that point. “Oh, 100 percent. I’m happy with how I dealt with it. It was cool,” Ben Rice replied. It was a historic day for the young man as he also became the first rookie to hit three home runs in a game and they defeated the Boston Red Sox 14-4.

Ben Rice was excited by the unforgettable accomplishment and the crucial victory

Ben Rice went 3-5 and contributed seven RBIs to his team’s score. During a post-game interview, he stated, “It’s definitely a day I’ll never forget. I’m just pumped that it was a big-time win for us, a good bounce-back win, and over my hometown team. So it’s pretty cool,” said Rice.

Following an impressive win on Saturday, the New York Yankees were defeated 0-3 by the Red Sox on Sunday, resulting in a 2-1 series loss. The Yankees will kick off their upcoming three-game series against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field on Tuesday and looks like Ben Rice will continue playing as Rizzo’s expected return timeline was set at 4-6 weeks.

The New York Yankees have also struggled in certain areas, which have allowed their opponents to exploit weaknesses. They require third basemen and second basemen, relief pitchers, and potentially a starter pitcher. For a brief time, it appeared they had a potential need for a first baseman as well.

Anthony Rizzo was struggling rather terribly and then he got injured, and he is still pretty much at least a month away from coming back. That led to speculation about the Yankees trading for Vladimir Guerrero Jr. or even Pete Alonso, but Rice has done well to build up the power void the Yankees formerly had in their roster, thus freeing up their resources for other targets.