The New York Yankees (13-8) were dealt devastating injury news before the 2025 MLB campaign even began, as Gerrit Cole required season-ending Tommy John surgery, Rookie of the Year Luis Gil suffered a lat strain and Giancarlo Stanton incurred tendinitis in both elbows. They have pushed through the adversity, however, and were on the verge of a six-game winning streak before a shocking 10-8 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays (9-12). The emergence of designated hitter Ben Rice is a pivotal reason why the ballclub currently sits in first place.

You know where this is going. Rice sustained a left elbow contusion and exited Saturday's game, per MLB.com's Bryan Hoch. He underwent X-rays and a CT scan, which came back negative.

Ben Rice has come up huge for Yankees thus far

The former 12th-round draft pick earned himself a spot at the top of the lineup after a strong start to the year. Following a 50-game 2023 sample size that saw him hit well below the Mendoza Line, Rice is exhibiting good balance through 65 at-bats this season. He has a .292 batting average, .403 on-base percentage and .600 slugging percentage to go with five home runs and nine RBIs.

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Although it may sound strange to those who have not watched the 26-year-old play in 2025, his potential absence could shrink the lineup by a decent amount. While Jazz Chisholm Jr., Anthony Volpe and a couple others try to work through their struggles at the plate, it is important to receive unexpected production from guys like Rice and Trent Grisham. There is probably a shelf life for those hot stretches, but New York wants to ride them for as long as possible.

Adding onto the concerning Ben Rice news was an implosion versus the Rays. The Yankees handed an 8-4 lead to Devin Williams, but the All-Star closer collapsed in the ninth. He surrendered four hits and walked one batter in a dreadful inning of work. Rays first baseman Jonathan Aranda hit a walk-off two-run homer off Yoendrys Gomez in the 10th to complete the improbable comeback.

It feels silly to partially attribute the loss to Rice's injury exit, considering New York put eight runs on the scoreboard, but that is how valuable he has been in the early portion of the season. The Yankees will try to keep their bats steady and bounce back in Sunday's series finale. Hopefully by then, the team has an encouraging update to share regarding the DH's timetable for return.