Designated hitter Ben Rice hit his 39th home run of the season as the New York Yankees beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 9-2 at Chase Field in Phoenix on Friday night.
Following the win, Yankees manager Aaron Boone claimed he predicted Rice would hit 39 home runs this year.
New York Yankees Manager Aaron Boone Made Bold Ben Rice Prediction That Came True
“Thirty-nine [home runs] was my prediction. I swear. So I’m hoping he goes sailing on by that,” Boone said. He’s been great. You look up at his numbers, and it’s an elite season. Really here of late, over the last three or four weeks, after a little bit of a lull there, he’s found his stride again. I feel like he’s having great at-bats every night.”
Aaron Boone tells @M_Marakovits he anticipated a big year from Ben Rice at the beginning of the season.
Rice, 27, is having the best season of his young career. He made his first career All-Star Game this season and has posted 3.6 bWAR and an .897 OPS with 39 home runs and 94 RBI over 146 games.
Rice was asked if he knew about Boone’s preseason prediction after the win.
“Yeah, he said something in spring training I feel like. ‘We really want you to get out there and hit 39 [home runs] for us.’ So I know what he was doing,” Rice said. “He was trying to get under my skin a little bit. He likes to short you one short you two of maybe what your goal would be.”
New York Yankees Right Now
The Yankees’ record improved to 89-64 after Friday’s win over the Diamondbacks.
New York has a 5 1/2-game lead over the Boston Red Sox for the top Wild Card spot.
In the division standings, New York is four games back of the Tampa Bay Rays for first place in the AL East.
Next, the Yankees are slated to play the Diamondbacks at 8:10 p.m. EDT on Saturday. The series will wrap up on Sunday afternoon.
The Yankees will finish the season by hosting the Tampa Bay Rays for four games, and then the Baltimore Orioles for three games.
If the standings hold up, the Yankees will host the Red Sox in the Wild Card round.
New York Yankees’ Aaron Boone Makes Bold Ben Rice Statement Amid Diamondbacks Series