Yankees stars Ben Rice and Cody Bellinger named Silver Slugger finalists.

Ben Rice and Cody Bellinger have been named finalists for the 2026 Silver Slugger Award.

The league announced the finalists on Thursday morning.

Rice is nominated at the designated hitter position.

Bellinger is nominated as an outfielder.

This is Rice’s first career Silver Slugger nomination.

Bellinger is looking for his third Silver Slugger honor.

Rice enjoyed a career year in 2026.

He smashed 41 home runs and posted an .897 OPS.

He was by far the Yankees’ best offensive producer.

That production came with Aaron Judge missing most of the season.

Rice played 154 games in 2026.

He batted .264 with a .363 on-base percentage and a .534 slugging percentage.

He drove in 97 runs and walked 85 times.

Rice also hit four home runs in the postseason.

He posted a 1.605 OPS across five playoff games.

He homered twice in AL Wild Card Game 1 against the Boston Red Sox.

He repeated that feat in Game 2 of the ALDS against Tampa Bay.

Rice became the first player in Yankees history to record two multihomer games in a single postseason.

He accounted for 34 percent of the Yankees’ total bases in the postseason.

That was the highest share by any individual whose team played at least five games in a single postseason.

Rice was blunt about the Yankees’ early exit.

“As far as I’m concerned, it’s a failure since we weren’t able to get the job done,” Rice said, according to MLB.com.

“It’s on to next year, unfortunately. … They outplayed us, plain and simple. They outpitched us, outhit us. It’s really that simple.”

Despite that production, Rice was not named an AL MVP finalist.

Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. made the cut instead.

Witt batted .281 with 18 home runs and 54 RBIs in 143 games.

Yankees fans reacted with frustration.

“Bobby Witt over Ben Rice, this list is so unserious 😂,” one fan wrote.

Rice is up against Yordan Alvarez at the DH position for the Silver Slugger.

Alvarez is the trendy pick to win the AL MVP award.

He flirted with the Triple Crown this season.

Bellinger missed time due to injury in 2026.

He still posted a .768 OPS and a 113 OPS+ in 132 games.

He swatted 17 home runs while batting .264.

Other outfield nominees include Randy Arozarena, Wilyer Abreu, Mike Trout, Riley Greene, Chandler Simpson, and Chase DeLauter.

The Yankees are not nominated for the team Silver Slugger award.

Their lineup struggled mightily without Judge.

The nominees for the team category include the resurgent White Sox, the Twins, the Astros, and the AL champion Rays.

Rice and Bellinger both bat left-handed.

They give the Yankees two productive lefty bats heading into the offseason.

Rice has established himself as a major part of the offense.

Luis García Jr., acquired from Washington during the summer, gives New York another proven power threat.

García finished the 2026 regular season batting .277 with 30 home runs, 92 RBIs and an .830 OPS.

Rice hit .264 with 41 homers, 97 RBIs and an .897 OPS.

Their combined 71 home runs underline why the club would want both in the lineup.

But the Yankees face a difficult decision about how to fit all their bats into the lineup.

First base offers a natural assignment for both Rice and García.

Manager Aaron Boone also has a designated hitter to accommodate.

Giancarlo Stanton remains under contract.

Aaron Judge could require occasional time away from the outfield without leaving the batting order.

Second base is an inviting answer on paper.

Jazz Chisholm Jr.’s free agency creates uncertainty at that position.

García spent much of his Washington career at second base before moving to first.