Ben Rice gives Yankees more than just a three-homer game

On Sunday afternoon, Rice said, he could still walk around New York with some anonymity.

The rookie first baseman, who was not a promising prospect but has steadily risen through the ranks since being drafted in the 12th round in 2021, made his debut about three weeks ago, hit well and rewrote the Yankees history books — those have been around for a long time — on Saturday by becoming the first rookie in franchise history to hit three home runs in a game.

The 25-year-old is 6’1″ and is no Aaron Judge or Giancarlo Stanton, whose imposing stature would likely be noticeable on the subway.

“I think I blend in, most of the time,” said Rice, whose most identifiable trait so far has been a smile plastered on his face.

With a rising profile, Rice was again at the top of the order for Sunday’s series finale against the Red Sox in the Bronx, which the Yankees lost 3-0.

And for the 14th time, Rice was starting at first base, a position he didn’t know until two years ago and a position he played well enough to ensure his bat stayed in the lineup.

The Massachusetts native grew up as a catcher and only played catcher at Dartmouth and in his first professional season. In 2022, however, a prospect with a solid bat and questionable glove has started to get reps at first base — but not many.

In four minor league seasons, Rice started 114 games as a catcher and only 52 as a first baseman. He was still playing both positions this season before Anthony Rizzo’s injury in mid-June gave Rice his first taste of the big leagues at first base.

Manager Aaron Boone acknowledged he was “raw” at the position. He had some growing pains, but he also showed remarkable qualities.

“He moves well. He’s a good athlete,” infield coach Travis Chapman said. “He’s just working on different movements, other than just catching and throwing, and … moving his feet around the base so he can make more plays.”

Rice’s feet can help him make more plays than a traditional, heavier first baseman, but he still has control over how far he can get off base and still be able to get back in time to catch a pitch.

On Saturday, Rice failed to recover a free throw from Anthony Volpe, but for the most part he made the plays he needed to.

The sample size isn’t large enough for advanced metrics to be reliable, but the early signs were positive: Somehow, among all MLB first basemen, a player called up last month entered the game ranked 10th in strikeouts above average at the position.

“I think you just have to adapt to the speed of the game,” Rice said of the biggest challenge of learning to play on the fly. “You just have to try to translate things from a practice setting to a game situation.”

On Sunday, Rice worked around the base with Chapman for a full hour before the rest of the Yankees infielders took ground balls.

He needs more reps, and Chapman has seen him get as many as possible in practice.

“Everybody thinks first base is easy: Just go out there and catch the ball,” Chapman said. “The reality is you’re trying to get as many balls as you can, while getting on base, using as much wingspan or creating as much wingspan as you can at first base and helping your guys make as many plays as possible.

“He’s doing a good job there.”

At worst, Rice has been playable there — and given the down-and-out at-bats around him and his own batting performance, the Yankees will happily continue to play him there.

On Saturday, Rice became the 26th player in Yankees regular-season history to hit three home runs in a game, while his seven RBIs tied Lou Gehrig for the most by a Yankees rookie in franchise history, at least since that statistic was first tracked in 1920.

A kid who grew up around Boston, with friends who were mostly Red Sox fans, finally checked his phone Saturday night.

“I’ve received a fair number of notifications, to say the least,” Rice said.