Ben Rice has hilarious response to first Yankees roll call in MLB debut

Good vibes only! New York Yankees top prospect Ben Rice is here making his MLB debut against the Baltimore Orioles after Anthony Rizzo was ruled out for eight weeks, and the stadium is buzzing with energy for this crucial series.

The Yankees jumped out to a 1-0 lead thanks to an Anthony Volpe RBI single, and they'll need as many wins as they can notch against Baltimore because the two teams will be neck-and-neck until the end of the campaign.

But enough business talk for now. Rice got the start at first base and is hitting sixth (behind Giancarlo Stanton and in front of Gleyber Torres). He flied out in his first at-bat, but had already endeared himself to the fan base.

During the bleacher creatures' roll call, he turned and gestured as if he were eating. We can only hope he was imitating "letting the big dawg eat." Alex Verdugo would be proud.

Nonetheless, whatever it meant, the crowd loved it. Social media loved it. Rice proved in the pregame that he has the right personality for New York, and his actions in the field helped solidify that notion.

Ben Rice has hilarious response to first Yankees roll call in MLB debut

Rice has arrived at a pivotal moment in the 2024 season. Rizzo's injury made the Yankees' decision a bit easier when it came to trying somebody new at first base because of how bad he's been. Now, New York can see what they have in Rice and give him ample time to adjust before potentially making a more drastic decision at the trade deadline.

The 12th-round pick out of Dartmouth talked about how excited he was in the pregame, and the screenshot from his conversation with Triple-A manager Shelley Duncan, who was informing him of the news, is priceless.

Happy to have you too, Ben. Let's have some fun. The best team in MLB needs some youthful reinforcements to keep pace in a stacked division and deep American League.

Right on cue! Rice singled in his second at-bat to load the bases. Smiling ear to ear. Now bring him home.