BOSTON — Ben Rice has spent most of the season looking like an MVP candidate. 

But the past six games have been much more pedestrian, magnified by the rest of the Yankees offense going through a cold stretch with him. 

Coming off a breather Friday, the slugging first baseman went 0-for-4 in Saturday’s 4-1 loss to the Red Sox.

He is batting just 2-for-23 with a .174 OPS over his past six games, of which the Yankees have lost four. 

“No doubt he’s grinding a little bit right now,” manager Aaron Boone said. “But that’s part of it, man. Even the guys that are going to the All-Star Game and are in the MVP conversations, there’s going to be weeks where it’s not easy, where you go through it a little bit. 

“He’ll be fine, he’ll get through that. Hopefully start getting it going [Sunday].” 

Ben Rice strikes out in the ninth inning of the Yankees’ 4-1 loss to the Red Sox on June 27, 2026 at Fenway Park. AP Photo/Steven Senne

To be clear, Rice is far from alone in having a rough week. But it is noticeable because of how impactful he has been for most of the season — he finished Saturday batting .276 with a .940 OPS — with this marking the quietest stretch of his season so far. 

It comes during a week in which the Yankees have faced a heavy dose of lefty starters — including each of the past four games, with Red Sox southpaw Jake Bennett holding him down Saturday. 

“I think [Bennett] executed pretty well against him to give him some problems,” Boone said. 

In a bit of an oddity, Rice grounded out in eight straight plate appearances before striking out in his final at-bat Saturday. 

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There’s still no timetable for the Yankees to get their two biggest bats back from the injured list in Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton, but two others should be back within the next week. 

Trent Grisham and Ryan McMahon are expected to come off the injured list during the club’s upcoming homestand that begins on Monday. 

Grisham, coming back from a right hamstring strain, is set to play in at least one rehab game, likely on Tuesday (the minor leagues are off Mondays), before potentially returning.

He was one of the Yankees’ hottest hitters before he got hurt, but his return should also help defensively, as his presence in center field allows Boone to put other players where they are best defensively. 

“I think he settles things a lot,” Boone said. 

Trent Grisham hits an RBI single driving home Amed Rosario in the eighth inning of the Yankees’ win over the Red Sox on June 7, 2026 at the Stadium. Corey Sipkin for the NY POST

“You know he’s there, now Belli’s where’s he needs [to be], then other guys are where they’re supposed [to be]. So yeah, we certainly miss him.” 

McMahon, meanwhile, is first eligible to be activated Thursday, an off-day, meaning he should be back for Friday’s series opener against the Twins. After being diagnosed with a peritonsillar abscess Wednesday, he was prescribed a few days of rest, but returned to New York on Friday to begin baseball activities again this weekend. 

“When he was leaving [Friday] morning from the hotel, he was feeling again another day better, good night’s sleep,” Boone said. “He should be doing baseball activities now all week and would expect him when the 10 days is up.” 

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Max Schuemann crushed his first home run as a Yankee in the fifth inning, a 412-foot blast off Bennett that represented the team’s only run of the day.

Schuemann was starting in center field. for the second time this season.