Ben Rice’s dad tells how his son has embraced Yankee Way

Aaron Judge chuckles.

“Is there anyone other than you and Anthony Volpe,” he is asked, “who loves being a Yankee more than Ben Rice?”

“He’s one of a kind,” Judge says. “The kid grew up in the Boston area, but I think he bleeds Yankee pinstripes, man.

“It’s just incredible the work he’s put in every single year. You see the passion after a homer he hits, after a good at-bat, after a good play. The guy just loves being out here. But even in spring training, we called him up to kinda play first base, which he’s never done before, kind of DH a little bit, to going back in the spring, he’s back to catching, trying to work on that, trying to improve — he’s the total package, man. You’re just kind of seeing what he’s doing on the baseball field right now, but just how he is in the clubhouse — the guy’s prepared for the meetings, he’s a great teammate, he’s talking with all his guys, he’s fluent in Spanish, which is pretty cool, so I think that helps out.