Ben Rice Hits Dream Home Run With Childhood Team, Helps Yankees Force Game 3

New York Yankees first baseman Ben Rice couldn’t stop smiling in his postgame press conference on Wednesday night.

His team just forced a Game 3 in the Wild Card round against the Boston Red Sox. The 26-year-old helped manufacture the win by hitting his first postseason home run. But it felt different for the first baseman.

Born in Massachusetts, Rice grew up supporting the Yankees, despite living in a Red Sox-dominated area.

So when he hit the ball over the fence in the first inning, he knew it was a special moment.

“It’s unbelievable, it’s so cool,” Rice said after the game. “To be part of the rivalry now, just given where I’m from and where I grew up and all that, just makes it all that much more special.”

Rice’s first-inning two-run homer set the stage for the Yankees to win a season-decisive game on Wednesday night, beating their rivals 4-3 and forcing a win-or-go-home Game 3.

In a tense atmosphere at Yankee Stadium, both sides continued to put pressure on each other as the game rolled into the eighth inning tied 3-3. However, the decisive moment came after catcher Austin Wells singled into right field and allowed infielder Jazz Chisholm Jr. to score the go-ahead run. New York held on and forced another game.

Rice, who is playing his first full season with the Yankees, says he’s prepared do anything for the team as they march on in the playoffs.

“I know my role,” he said. “[Tuesday] my role was to be ready for a big at-bat off the bench and [Wednesday] I was starting. So the approach doesn’t change. I’m just going to be prepared for every at-bat I get and every chance I get.”

On Thursday, Aaron Boone‘s side kept the Red Sox off the board and recorded four runs in the fourth inning. It was enough for the Yankees to advance to the ALDS where they’ll face the Toronto Blue Jays.