{"id":117627,"date":"2026-04-02T08:00:57","date_gmt":"2026-04-02T12:00:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/?p=117627"},"modified":"2026-04-02T09:05:13","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T13:05:13","slug":"waiting-on-the-captain-stanton-and-rice-keep-the-offense-afloat-during-judges-slow-start-to-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/2026\/04\/02\/waiting-on-the-captain-stanton-and-rice-keep-the-offense-afloat-during-judges-slow-start-to-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Waiting on the Captain: Stanton and Rice Keep the Offense Afloat During Judge\u2019s Slow Start"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Yankees are off to a hot start in 2026<\/a>, going 5-1 on their opening road trip. The story of the first six games will be how dominant their pitching has been to begin the season, which is true. A footnote to open the season is how their offense has not been as dominant as expected<\/a>. It will get better as the season progresses, with regulars in the lineup getting into grooves and possibly a move to the minors to get offensive health<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Rice, Stanton off to Hot Starts<\/h2>\n

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The two hottest hitters in the Yankees lineup have been Ben Rice<\/a> and Giancarlo Stanton<\/a>. Rice has been on base what feels like all season so far, and his at-bat qualities have been great. For the first time since the arrival of Aaron Judge<\/a>, it really feels like the Yankees have developed a very high-quality offensive player who could receive MVP votes. Rice had one of the biggest hits of the game on Wednesday in retrospect with a solo home run in the top of the ninth. This took away some of the stress in the bottom of the ninth that saw David Bednar<\/a> bend and not break.<\/p>\n

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RICE WITH SOME NICE INSURANCE pic.twitter.com\/gODGPfZ0ck<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 The 4 to the 7 Podcast (@4tothe7pod) April 1, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n