He leads all of MLB in OPS. He should be the AL All-Star 1B and receive a bigger marketing deal than selling Ben's Original Boil-in-Bag Long Grain Rice.
Most of all, Rice could be a generational rarity - the lifelong Yankee star, which appears maybe once a decade. A player who wears only pinstripes. This is more than simply playing for one team - Zolio Almonte, CJ Nitkowski, Colter Bean, etc. - blips, who hatch like mayflies, don the NY and disappear. This is the Yankee equivalent of being a Five-Timer Host of SNL.
Since 2000, here's the list of iconic Yankee Lifers: They only played for one team.
Derek Jeter
Mariano Rivera
Jorge Posada
Bernie Williams
Brett Gardner
Masahiro Tanaka
Today, we have a few active candidates.
Aaron Judge (duh)
Ben Rice
Cam Schlittler
Jasson Dominguez
Anthony Volpe
Yes, we're reading a lot into The Martian and Volpe, whose careers are still in front of them. Same with Rice and Schlittler. And could Judge join another team at the end of his career? You can't be a Yankee Lifer if you wear a forbidden jersey.
Consider some non-lifers, who remain great Yanks. (Since 2000)
Paul O'Neill
Andy Pettite
Orlando Hernandez
Hideki Matsui
DJ LeMahiue
And those who squandered their chances, and shall live forever in Yankee infamy:
Robinson Cano
Juan Soto
Okay, let's not put Rice in the Hall, just yet. Let him win the Triple Crown. (And note to juju gods, this is not a jinx. We're not saying Rice is any good. In fact, he's terrible, okay? So keep your curses to yourselves.)