Yankees: Defending Giancarlo Stanton

Yankees outfielder Giancarlo Stanton has become public enemy number one

Giancarlo Stanton is entering his third season in the Bronx. As much as New York Yankees fans can fall head over heels for players like Derek Jeter and Aaron Judge, the fan base can display equal frustration and vitriol to players wearing the very same uniform.

For many fans, resentment following three painful postseason exits has somehow fallen on the shoulders of one man, Giancarlo Stanton.

Go ahead, scroll through social media and see fans clamoring on and on about Stanton’s health, hefty price tag, and his approach at the plate.

Maybe it’s just a vocal minority or it could be that he has already earned the prestigious honor as the next player that Yankees fans will unjustly dislike. Whatever the reason for the animosity, Stanton deserves more credit and patience heading into the 2020 season.

Remember, Stanton was booed just weeks into his Yankees career. In April 2018, after striking out five times, boos rained down from the stands. Impatient Yankees fans with unrealistic expectations already found themselves fed up with Stanton.

Now I admit, at the time, I was frustrated too. After New York overachieved in 2017 and found itself one game away from the World Series, I foolishly thought the addition of a former NL MVP to pair alongside Judge was the recipe for a 28th ring immediately.

Through all that Stanton had to endure through two seasons, he enters the 2020 campaign with fans ready to chastise his every move. Stanton doesn’t have the homegrown aspect on his side, he makes more money than every player minus Gerrit Cole and already missed an entire season thanks to a handful of freak injuries.

Ther expectations should be high for Stanton. Fans should expect top-tier numbers but to be already casting him off as a luxury and a failed addition is misguided.

Giancarlo Stanton: Fluke injuries or a glimpse into the future?

The overarching feeling among Stanton’s faultfinders is his reliability, thanks to multiple soft tissue injuries he suffered a year ago.

Stanton played in only 18 regular-season games in 2019. A litany of injuries left him rehabbing for practically the entire year. After recovering from torn biceps in June, Stanton would sprain his right PCL a week later. That injury would send his season off the rails.

During his rehab process, Stanton would face several setbacks, including a minor league pitcher hitting him with a pitch, adding another month to a frustrating process.

Still, Stanton fought to get ready for the postseason and made his impact right away. Of course, Stanton wouldn’t be able to build on a strong start to his playoffs, thanks to a rushed rehab process, as Yankees general manager Brian Cashman would note after the season.

That fight is something Stanton has carried with him throughout his career. As the author of “Inside the Empire: The True Power Behind the New York Yankees,” Bob Klapisch explored for NJ.com, Stanton had to battle back from what was a life-threatening injury after he took a Mike Fiers pitch to the face in 2014.

Yankees fans don’t give enough credit for his toughness and perseverance. Even with setback after setback, Stanton clawed his way onto the 2019 postseason roster.

Stanton is aware of the situation. His comments after suffering a quad injury early in spring training are a testament to his dedication and passion towards the team’s success.

“It makes it seem that I don’t take care of myself,’’ Stanton said. “It makes it that much more frustrating.’’

Of course, that injury would have sidelined him if the 2020 campaign started out as planned. COVID-19 had other plans and manager Aaron Boone has said Stanton will be ready to play when baseball returns.

The 2020 season and beyond will tell if his health will be a problem in the future but a look through his career shows that the narrative around his health is simply false.

When ignoring his rookie season where he was called up in the middle of the campaign and his 2019 season, Stanton has played in 130 games per season. Judge through his first three full seasons sits at 123 games per year, for comparison.

Yankees need to have patience with Giancarlo Stanton

The Yankees franchise itself is built with a win-now mindset and the Yankees faithful follow suit. Patience isn’t always in our vocabulary. However, it probably is best to be patient with Stanton. After all, Stanton will be in pinstripes for a decade when it’s all set and done.

Stanton is under contract with the Yankees until 2028. Instead of harboring on one season where injuries piled on, how about defending a player who will play an integral role in bringing a World Series Championship back to the Bronx.

The bottom line for Stanton is simple. No argument is going to please Stanton’s critics unless he helps lead the Yankees to a World Series. It’s easy to see how Stanton’s tenure in New York will follow a similar path to that of A-Rod, pre-steroid scandal.

Throughout the mid-2000s, Rodriguez won a pair of MVPs, helped lead the way to numerous AL East Division titles but it still wasn’t enough. However, it would all pay off with a historic performance in the 2009 postseason and a 27th Championship for the organization.

With time and what appears to be a loaded roster in 2020, Stanton is going to have the chance to cement his legacy in pinstripes and silence all of the doubters. After two seasons, Stanton’s tenure can best be defined as a mixed bag.

Unfairly, that mixed bag has already left a portion of the fan base labeling him a disappointment. Luckily, there is plenty of time for Stanton to silence the doubters.