Who is pitching to Ben Rice in the Home Run Derby? Meet Dan Rice, father of Yankees slugger
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Who is pitching to Ben Rice in the Home Run Derby? Meet Dan Rice, father of Yankees slugger originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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Father-son duos have had plenty of success in the Home Run Derby, from Cal Raleigh and his dad, Todd, last year, to Bryce Harper (2018) and Robinson Cano (2011) also winning with their fathers on the mound.
Ben Rice is hopeful he can extend that trend in Philadelphia.
The Yankees slugger chose his dad to pitch to him in the Home Run Derby, hoping all of those years of experience throwing the ball to each other pays off on the big stage.
Here's more to know about Rice's father and Home Run Derby pitcher, Dan Rice.
MORE:Who will win the Home Run Derby?
Who is pitching to Ben Rice in the Home Run Derby?
Rice chose his father, Dan, to pitch to him in the Home Run Derby, telling MLB.com that he takes batting practice from his dad every offseason.
“My dad has always been there for me,” Rice said. “Every offseason, I’m going back and making sure I get my BP in with my dad. He always went the extra mile. He’d drive an hour-plus or two hours from Cohasset, and we’d go hit at a local field to get our swings in for the day.”
Rice credits his dad, who played college baseball as a pitcher in the 1980s, with helping him refine his swing growing up.
“Our BP was never about nitpicking my swing or a lot of instruction, to be honest,” Rice said. “He would try to throw me off-balance with different pitches and have me work through situations. He wanted me to become a good hitter, not necessarily to have a great swing. That was huge in my development.”
Here's more to know about Rice's dad.
MORE:Does the Home Run Derby actually ruin players' swings?
Who is Dan Rice?
Dan Rice pitched for Brown University in the 1980s, graduating in 1986. He has been a lawyer for more than 30 years and now focuses on the "representation of parties in employment disputes before state and federal courts and administrative agencies," according to LinkedIn.
Dan's most important job, however, is being a father. He told the New York Post when Ben was called up in 2024 that he has been throwing to his son since he was a toddler.
"As soon as he could start whacking things, I was throwing stuff to him," Dan said, explaining "I had an ‘L’ Screen, it’s kind of an unusual suburban accessory, so I could just throw him little tennis balls, then he got old enough we’d go down to the little league field. He grew out of that, we’d go to the other fields."
When Ben finally achieved his MLB dream, Dan could finally exhale. "I was scared to let myself even imagine that this was gonna happen," he said in 2024.
Now, father and son get the chance to share a moment on a major-league field with millions watching.
Where is Ben Rice from?
Rice grew up southwest of Boston in Cohasset, Massachusetts, but he grew up as a Yankees fan with Derek Jeter as his favorite player.
Initially a hockey player growing up, Rice found his niche on the diamond and went up to New Hampshire to spend his college days at Dartmouth. The COVID-19 pandemic wiped out much of his college career, but the Yankees took a chance on him and put the Massachusetts-born slugger on a path to the Bronx.