The Yankees’ offensive issues have been made worse by a cold stretch from the one hitter who had been carrying the load.
Ben Rice, an All-Star in the first half after a huge start to the season, has hit a rough patch since the break. Over 23 games since July 17, the 27-year-old is batting .163/.258/.314 with 14 hits and a 63 wRC+ across 97 plate appearances. That’s a sharp drop from the .279/.372/.599 line and 168 wRC+ he put up in the first 91 games.
The timing could hardly be worse for New York. Aaron Judge, Cody Bellinger and Giancarlo Stanton have all been slowed by injuries, and expected contributors like Jazz Chisholm Jr., Trent Grisham and Austin Wells have not been able to make up the difference. With Rice serving as the lineup’s most reliable threat for much of the year, his slide naturally stands out.
Still, the underlying numbers suggest this is more frustration than warning sign.
The biggest issue has been strikeouts. Rice has struck out 32 times in the second half, a 33.0% rate, while drawing just 11 walks. That’s up from a 23.3% strikeout rate in the first half, and the extra swing-and-miss has dragged down his production.
But the quality of contact remains loud. Rice has averaged 91.4 mph in exit velocity on 54 balls in play since the All-Star break, and 27 of those batted balls have left the bat at 95 mph or harder. He’s also hitting more line drives than he did before the break, going from 17.7% to 22.2%, while his ground-ball rate has dipped from 42.3% to 37.0%.
That kind of contact usually plays. Rice’s expected numbers say as much: a .226 expected batting average in the second half, a .466 expected slugging percentage and a .338 expected weighted on-base average. Those marks are all well above his actual .163 average, .314 slugging and .259 wOBA since the break.
In other words, Rice has been making the kind of contact that should lead to better results, but too many of those balls have been finding gloves instead of gaps. That has also been the broader story of his 2025 season, when he hit .255/.337/.499 with a .358 wOBA despite expected marks of .280 xBA, .553 xSLG and .391 xwOBA on balls in play.
The first half of 2026 brought the correction, and Rice looked like one of the best hitters in baseball. Now the pendulum has swung the other way, with less reward for the same hard contact and more damage from the strikeouts.
For the Yankees, the slump has landed at a brutal moment. But if Rice keeps hitting the ball with the same force, another surge should not be far behind.
In Other News...
Yankees Suddenly Have A Chance To Upgrade Behind Austin Wells
The catching market shifted quickly when Boston activated Adley Rutschman from the injured list and moved on from Jake Rogers, a veteran backstop who has been in the mix with multiple clubs this summer. For a Yankees team that has Austin Wells entrenched as the starter and Ali Snchez as the right-handed reserve, that kind of roster churn can matter, especially when a familiar name suddenly becomes available.
Rogers is the sort of catcher clubs value for reasons that do not always show up in the box score. He has a reputation for handling pitchers well and bringing defensive stability, while his bat has not been the draw. For the Yankees, the question is whether that profile is enough to make him a better fit than what they already have behind Wells, and whether they see enough upside to jump in before another team does. [Read more 🡒]
Yankees May Have Won The Catcher Gamble Without Making The Splash
The Yankees chose the quieter route behind the plate, signing Mitch Garver to shore up a catcher spot that needed attention without chasing the biggest name on the market. It was the kind of move that drew less noise than a blockbuster pursuit, but it also reflected a front office willing to trust fit and value over headlines, especially with other catching options moving around the league.
Adley Rutschmans path to Boston only adds to the conversation, because the former top prospect has not been the same offensive force he once was and his recent seasons have been shaped by injuries. For the Yankees, the larger takeaway is less about who they passed on and more about whether a modest gamble can pay off in a division where the Red Sox have altered their roster and the Orioles are forced to reconsider theirs. [Read more 🡒]
Yankees Frustration With Trent Grisham Just Spilled Into Plain View
Trent Grishams first year back in pinstripes has not unfolded the way the Yankees hoped after he accepted a $22 million qualifying offer following a strong previous season. His offense has backed up a bit, and the bigger concern has been the work in center field, where his defense has graded below average and started to draw sharper attention as the season has worn on.
That unease spilled into the open during a recent game, when a defensive misplay set off visible frustration from a Yankees pitcher on the mound. It was the kind of moment that tends to linger beyond one inning, because for a team with postseason expectations, shaky communication and uneven play in center can quickly become more than just a passing annoyance. [Read more 🡒]