Yankees' Ben Rice first base decision vs. Paul Goldschmidt made clear by MLB insider

The New York Yankees have given themselves options.

They knew Ben Rice would enter the season as their starting first baseman, but they still signed Paul Goldschmidt to return to the Bronx in free agency.

That maneuver has plenty of fans wondering whether manager Aaron Boone will limit Rice's playing time in favor of the aging Goldschmidt.

The reality, though? 

The New York Post's Joel Scherman writes "Ben Rice won't get buried because the Yankees signed Paul Goldschmidt."

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Sherman goes on to point out that Goldy is mostly in town to play against left-handed pitching while providing a quality bench option and veteran leader.

That makes sense, and it'd be a surprise if Boone deviated from that too heavily.

In 2025, Rice had 467 at bats, batted .255 and slugged 26 home runs.

Rice drove in 65 runs and scored 74 times. He had an awesome OPS of .836.

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For the Yanks in 2025, Goldschmidt batted .274 with a .731 OPS. Just against lefties, though, his OPS was .981.

Goldy is 38 years old now, clearly near the end of his career. 

Rice will turn 27 later in February, right in his prime and the first baseman of the present and future.

Goldschmidt was a quality signing to bring back for Brian Cashman. But it doesn't seem Yankees fans have to fear him taking too much time away from Rice.

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