Although he served as a backup catcher to Joe Garagiola in 1946, he regularly played whenever Harry Brecheen pitched. The Cardinals ended the season tied for first place with the Brooklyn Dodgers and the two teams met in the 1946 National League tie-breaker series. It was the first playoff tiebreaker in Major League Baseball history. The Cardinals won the first two games of the best-of-three game series to capture the National League pennant. In the 1946 World Series against the Boston Red Sox, Rice caught all three of Brecheen's victories, as the Cardinals defeated the Red Sox in seven games. He was also the hitting standout in Game 2, with a single, a double and a walk, scoring two runs in the Cardinals' 3–0 victory.