Giancarlo Stanton, one of the most criticized athletes in New York, is looking like an All-Star once again.
In the Yankees’ 10-4 victory over the White Sox Friday night, Stanton went 2-for-4 with a homerun and two RBI. It was his 10th HR of the season and his third in the last three games.
Before Friday, in Stanton’s previous seven games, he batted .308, with five home runs, 14 RBI, and an .885 slugging percentage with an on-base percentage of .385. For the season, he’s hitting .277, with nine homers, 28 RBI, a .311 OBP, and a slugging percentage of .527.
Stanton made his MLB debut back in 2010 with the then-Florida Marlins and it was a complete success. During his eight years with the Marlins, he batted .268, with an on-base percentage of .360, and a slugging percentage of .554. Giancarlo, who went by Mike back then, was a four-time All-Star, a two-time Silver Slugger winner, a two-time recipient of the Hank Aaron Award, and was named NL MVP after hitting 59 home runs and knocking in 132 RBI in 2017 — his final year with the team.
Stanton was traded to the Yankees in December of 2017 for Starling Castro, Jorge Guzman, and Jose Devers. This was the second time in MLB history that a player who hit at least 50 home runs would be traded the following offseason and it came just three years after he had signed a 13-year, $325 million extension.
Stanton’s first season with the Yankees was not awful by any means. He played in 158 games with a .266 average, 38 home runs, 100 RBI, a .343 OBP and a slugging percentage of .509. However, he drew a lot of criticism due to his 211 strikeouts — the most by a single player in Yankees history.
The 2019 and shortened 2020 season were not successful campaigns in any way. Stanton only played 41 games total due to several injuries. The fans were at the height of discontent with him at that point.
In 2021, Stanton missed some games due to injury, but not to the extent of 2019. In 2021, he played 139 games, he had 35 home runs and 97 RBI, but ended up striking out 157 times — again averaging more than one strikeout in every game he played in. Stanton has not earned a single honor during his four years in the Bronx.
Thes biggest criticism of Stanton has been his strikeouts. In every season he has played with the Yankees, he averaged more than one strikeout per game.
Yankees fans and media are arguing that his play has not matched the money the team is paying him but what they fail to realize is that this is not just a Stanton problem…
This is a baseball problem.
Baseball has been increasingly valuing the home run, and while home runs have been going up, so have strikeouts. Players around the Majors are essentially going all-or-nothing when up to bat. Expect strikeouts to be more and more common for everyone as long as this trend continues.
The Yankees are one of the best teams in baseball this season. Stanton is a big part of their success and he is definitely off to a great start.
The question is whether or not he can be consistent throughout the entire season, stay healthy, and be one of the best players in baseball… which is what Yankees fans and media were expecting when they traded for him.
Giancarlo Stanton has 9 homers tracked at 470+ feet since 2015. No other player has more than 4. The red hot MLBbro hit a Darryl Strawberry-like missile 472-feet on Friday night to lead the Yankees to an 8-2 win over the Oakland A’s. The win was the Yankees’ 13th straight victory, the decorated franchise’s longest streak in 60 years.
The Yankees placed MLBbro Giancarlo Stanton on their 10-day injured list due to a left quad strain, the team announced prior to Monday’s series opener against the Texas Rangers.
Right-hander Albert Abreu will fill Stanton’s spot on the roster for the time being.
The 31-year-old slugger has battled the injury bug his entire career. Stanton has now been on the IL/DL eight times since entering the major leagues in 2010 and was sidelined for all but 41 games over the past two seasons due to a string of injuries.
The Yankees now have several inactive players. Stanton joins teammates Gleyber Torres (COVID-19), Rougned Odor (knee), Aaron Hicks (wrist), Zach Britton (elbow), Darren O’Day (shoulder), Clarke Schmidt (elbow), and others on the sidelines.
Prior to being scratched from the lineup Friday night against the Baltimore Orioles due to left quad tightness, Stanton had been healthy and having an incredible season.
Through the first 33 games, Stanton batted .282/.347/.534 with nine home runs and 24 RBIs. He caught fire in late April with a 12-game hitting streak that included six home runs and a .480 BA.
Yankees’ manager Aaron Boone told Sports Illustrated he is targeting a May 25 return date for Stanton. Boone added that no tests have been done on the slugger’s injury, but that an MRI is under consideration.
With three DH’s currently inactive, Boone said they will need to “get a little creative” for Monday night’s game.
Before coming to the Big Apple, Giancarlo Stanton made his MLB debut for the Florida Marlins back in 2010 and he went by another name.
The behemoth of a man is best known for launching monstrous home runs out of stadiums with exit velocities that would break a radar gun. But if you ask the casual fan what Stantons’ original name was, many of them would have to use a lifeline.
Why The Name Change?
Stanton, whose full name is Giancarlo Cruz Michael Stanton went by Mike during his adolescence because educators and classmates alike couldn’t pronounce his surname.
He continued to go by Mike in his stint in the Minor Leagues as well as the first two seasons in the show before eventually returning to Giancarlo at the start of the 2012 season.
When he informed the media and fans alike that he was going with his birth name going forward, it was a shock to his parents. Stanton felt it was time to be an adult. As Stanton left his childish name behind, he realized how important it was to him and his family and decided to reembrace his birth name.
The man wasn’t ashamed of his first name as he had Giancarlo stitched and embroidered on all his equipment ranging from bats, gloves, and everything in between.
How Did The Name Come About?
Born to Parents Michael Stanton of Irish descent and Jacinta Garay of African-American and Puerto Rican ancestry, Stanton’s parents fell in love with Italian movies and names that accompanied them and decided to give their son an Italian forename.
Originally Garay wanted to name her youngest son Fidel after the Cuban Prime Minister!
If Stanton thought he was having a hard time with teammates and coaches butchering Giancarlo, Fidel would have gotten it even worse. Can you imagine playing in Florida around the sizeable Cuban population with that name?
The Yankees slugger has grown up with various names. He responds to Cruz when he is around his mother or Mike when he is around his father. The Yankees organization and the fanatics surrounding the team hope he responds to a championship as they believe the name Giancarlo has a RING to it.
Recent Comments