ARLINGTON, Texas — During Monday night’s Yankees victory over Texas, Aaron Judge made sure Ben Rice’s home run total stayed behind his own by just one swing of the bat.
The powerful duo has now achieved a milestone for the New York Yankees that hasn’t been seen since Hall of Famers Mickey Mantle and Yogi Berra did it decades ago.
Rice launched a two-run blast 404 feet to left field in the Yankees’ 4-2 victory on Monday evening, marking his 10th home run of the campaign. Judge wasted no time responding, crushing a full-count curveball 414 feet to claim a share of the MLB lead with his 11th homer.
“After he hit his, he said, ‘I’m not going to let Benny catch me,’” Rice said with a smile. “Just trying to keep him honest, keep him motivated.”
The pair became only the second set of Yankees players to both reach double-digit home runs within the team’s first 29 games, matching the achievement of Mantle and Berra from 1956.
“I’m glad that I don’t have to face them, let’s just put it that way,” said Yankees pitcher Max Fried (4-1), who delivered six shutout innings for New York (19-10).
“Benny’s off to an amazing start. Judgie, ho-hum, 11 homers already,” manager Aaron Boone said. “It’s a pretty good combo there.”
The 27-year-old first baseman Rice is batting .322 with 23 RBIs, while Judge sits at .252 with 19 RBIs.
“Just consistent at-bat after consistent at-bat. Like it’s must-watch TV at this point,” Judge said of Rice. “He’s going to put something in play hard or he’s going to take his walk and pass the baton. It’s just impressive to watch, and I get a front-row seat. … And, makes my job easier when he does that.”
Rice connected on a 95 mph first-pitch fastball from Jack Leiter, sending it into the Yankees bullpen in left-center field for a 2-0 lead with two outs in the third inning. The blast was Rice’s sixth long ball in 11 contests.
Judge followed by driving his shot into the left-field seats, with the ball landing near the same area where he hit his American League record-setting 62nd home run on Oct. 4, 2022. He also collected two doubles and was hit by a pitch in his other trips to the plate.
“Maybe his best game of at-bats. … On all four times, stings two doubles, smokes the homer where he just rides out the curveball,” Boone said.
The performance came just one day after Judge also went yard on his 34th birthday.
Judge has connected for 260 of his 379 career home runs since the beginning of the 2021 season and already boasts four 50-homer campaigns.
Rice has tallied 43 home runs in 216 career games since making his debut in June 2024.
Following their explosive starts in 1956, Mantle went on to lead the majors with 52 home runs while Berra concluded the season with 30.
When Rice was questioned about whether he could maintain this pace alongside Judge throughout the entire season, he expressed his appreciation for the current moment.
“Yeah, I don’t know how long this is going to last, but I’m enjoying it. I’m enjoying it right now being this close,” Rice said before considering the historical significance he now shares with three former MVPs: Judge and two Hall of Fame legends.
“It’s pretty cool. I definitely would not have anticipated something like that,” he said. “But obviously the three names I’m surrounded with there are pretty big ones, so definitely very humbling.”
