The New York Yankees are about to be put in a tough spot when Giancarlo Stanton returns. They are going to have to find a spot for Ben Rice to play.
Rice has been the team’s primary first baseman this year. He is slashing .250/.337/522. He has 12 home runs in 53 games, as opposed to his seven home runs in 50 games last season. However, when Stanton is healthy, he will likely be the everyday designated hitter. Rice can play catcher and first base, but the problem is that the Yankees are not going to remove Austin Wells or Paul Goldschmidt from the lineup.
A change at catcher is less than ideal, and Wells has been playing well. Goldschmidt is hitting .323 with an .850 OPS and six home runs. As long as he is on the team, he is going to play, but Newsweek’s Andrew Wright suggested the Yankees trade him to keep Rice in the lineup.
“New York won’t be able to get Rice, Stanton and Goldschmidt in the same lineup on a regular basis, so it seems that a move of some sort will have to be made,” wrote Wright. “The trade of a player on a one-year deal rather than a young, promising player could be the correct move for the Yankees to make.
“Goldschmidt has gotten off to an excellent start this season, with a .327 average, six home runs and .859 OPS in 220 at-bats. Even more impressive, he has done incredible work against left-handed pitchers, posting a slash line of .520/.613/.900 in 50 at-bats.”
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Goldschmidt will be a free agent after the season, and with how Rice has performed, it is likely that he will take over at first base. Trading Goldschmidt is a risky move, considering he is helping the Yankees win right now. However, keeping him and making Rice a bench player could hurt them in the long run.
It’s an even bigger risk if the Yankees are unsure about how healthy Stanton is or how well he will perform. The Yankees are not going to be sellers at the deadline, but trading Goldschmidt could keep them as contenders and land them some help in other areas. Stanton’s lack of defensive ability has really set the Yankees up for some tough decisions.
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