Copyright newsweek
The New York Yankees have a lot of holes to fill on their roster this offseason. It wasn’t a perfect year for the Yankees, but they advanced farther into the postseason than many expected. Now, general manager Brian Cashman has the chance to retool the roster for Aaron Boone and reload for next season. New York knows it has to get things right this season as far as signing free agents and adding players via trade. With starting pitching, relievers and a quality third baseman among the needs, Anthony McCarron believes the team could consider trading Ben Rice. TORONTO, ONTARIO – OCTOBER 05: Ben Rice #22 of the New York Yankees hits a two run double during the seventh inning in game two of the American League Division Series against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre on October 05, 2025 in Toronto, Ontario. (Photo by Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images) “As a young, inexpensive major leaguer, he’s likely someone that teams with big names to trade would want in return,” McCarron wrote for SNY. “Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported that the Yanks are already getting calls from other teams to gauge Rice’s availability. To get in on a big deal, perhaps Rice is, ahem, on the menu.” Just to clear this up for those who don’t already know it, but teams can ask for a specific player from any team as much as they want. The Yankees are under no obligation to trade him, and teams asking about him does not guarantee that the Bronx Bombers are even considering a move. Rice is an interesting player because he is one of the best in the game offensively. Defensively, however, he doesn’t really have a set position where he is at least viewed as a league-average defender. “The problem with potentially using Rice, who isn’t even eligible for arbitration until 2028, in a trade is that he could very well be the Yanks’ everyday first baseman in 2026,” McCarron wrote. “He may not fit the desired defensive profile there – the Yankees generally covet a strong glove at first. But they could pair the lefty-swinger with a righty-hitting defensive whiz. Rice, who also made 36 appearances behind the plate, can offer roster flexibility as a second, or even third, catcher.” The Yankees would have to decide if a strong bat is worth having a poor defender at first base. Generally, first base is the one position you can get away with having a weaker defender, but New York may not be on board with that notion. However, Rice is only 26 years old. At the end of the day, he has plenty of time to develop into a league-average defender at the very least. Unless the Yankees receive a king’s ransom for him, Cashman should absolutely not be considering trading him. More MLB: Red Sox Linked to Adding 45-Home-Run Slugger in Huge Intra-Division Trade
