Aaron Judge's teammate Ben Rice reacts to Spencer Jones' sentimental take on Yankees first baseman

Spencer Jones and Ben Rice were Double-A Somerset teammates until Rice rose through the ranks all the way to join the Aaron Judge-led New York Yankees to make his debut at first base last season in the MLB. This happened after everyday first baseman Anthony Rizzo went down with an injury.

While the No. 12 prospect Rice may have beaten No. 2 prospect Jones in the race to debut in the majors, Jones was happy to see Rice succeed.

On Thursday, the MLB posted a video where Rice and Jones sat on a couch, reminiscing their time with Somerset. Then was also one video from the 2024 Future All-Star games where Jones gave a sentimental take on Rice.

"This is the sentimental clip I wanted to show," Jones said before the clip was shown.

"Yeah, I mean, Ben's one of my favorite teammates, one of my good friends," Jones said in the clip. "He's one of those guys that everybody who plays with him roots for, you know what I mean? And him having so much success — it's so cool to see. I think it's awesome for the baseball community to find out how great of a player he is. Incredibly smart guy — he's bilingual, right? He's been playing a lot of first base, but he's also an incredible catcher. I think you guys are just scratching the surface."

Rice was initially shocked upon hearing such kind words from his teammate.

"I mean, that's my guy right here," Rice said. "This is my guy. I'm pumped I saw that, though. Yeah, no, for real. Definitely one of my best friends in the organization. Coming up through the minors with him has been really special, and I'm really excited to see what he does when he debuts — it's going to be awesome."

Spencer Jones is lefty Aaron Judge in minor leagues

Just like Ben Rice got to play with the New York Yankees last season, Spencer Jones also hopes his number gets called sooner rather than later.

In the minors, many hail him as the lefty Aaron Judge due to his intimidating size and power. Moreover, his speed, center-field defense and throwing arm only add to the comparison.

“His height and his size, it’s a little intimidating,” Mets prospect Brandon Sproat said in July, via New York Post. “You look up and it’s like, jeez, he’s tall. He’s got great tools.”

The one struggle for Jones is that he is struck out often, much like how Judge was during his first season in the majors. The Yankees captain struck out 44.2% of his at-bats.

Jones is part of the Yankees spring training unit. He has had seven plate appearances in the ongoing Grapefruit League, where he has recorded two hits, including a home run, averaging .286.

The Yankees will likely call him up to make his debut at some point soon.