Ben Rice, Yankees bail out Max Fried as they take series against Cardinals

James O'Connell, New York Daily News on Aug 16, 2025

Published in Baseball

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The New York Yankees bailed out their ace on Saturday night in St. Louis.

Max Fried did not have his stuff once again, however, Ben Rice and the Bombers’ offense came to the rescue in a 12-8 win over the Cardinals to secure the three-game set. Rice recorded seven RBIs and three hits, including a go-ahead fourth-inning three-run homer — his 18th of the year — to give the Yanks a 6-5 lead.

The Yanks have continued to find ways to get the 26-year-old into the lineup as often as possible. The hard-hitting slugger is slashing .241/.333/.474 on the season. Breakout outfielder Trent Grisham also came through with a 4 for 4 night, scoring four times and walking once. The free-agent-to-be is making a case for a big payday this offseason.

Fried, however, had another difficult night. The left-hander went five innings, allowing seven earned runs with six strikeouts. The Yankees ace entered the night with a 6.00 ERA in his last seven starts. If making October and going on a deep run is in the Yankees plans, Fried will need to get right sooner rather than later.

Aaron Judge also got into the action, recording two hits and his 39th homer of the season. The two-time MVP has struggled since returning from the IL, but broke through with a nice night on Saturday.

Ryan McMahon smashed his first-career homer in pinstripes in the seventh inning for some insurance. McMahon’s blast was his 17th of the season.

Aaron Boone turned to Devin Williams in the top of the sixth and he recorded a scoreless inning. Yerry De Los Santos tossed a scoreless two frames before handing the ball off to Mark Leiter Jr. for the final three outs to secure the victory.

The Yanks will go to the surging Will Warren to secure the series victory on Sunday afternoon. Miles Mikolas will take the ball for the Cardinals.

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