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.

How soon we forget how great Giancarlo Stanton can be

Let’s flashback to the 2018 season.

Immediately, Stanton comes through in his first game with New York, hitting a pair of homers. He quickly falls back down to earth and hits just .230/.313/.425 in March and April.

Quickly, Stanton returns to form, shaking off the early season racket fans caused at Yankee Stadium, a place where players are typically supported.

Even with the backlash, he is in the lineup every night, grinding as the 2018 Yankees won 100 games. Although his numbers were down from his career year in 2017, Stanton still led the Yankees in home runs and RBI.

Here is where I am going to note that he led the team in games played? Stanton saw the field in 158 games that season, something fans who criticize his availability love to ignore.

Plus, Stanton was at his best when he was needed most in 2018. As Judge recovered from an injury he suffered at the end of July, Stanton, through all of August, had his best stretch of the season. He hit nine homers, drove in 20 runs, and posted a .267/.372/.578 line.

At this point in the season, the Yankees started to show some cracks in their armor. Boston came into the Bronx and swept a four-game series to kick off August and New York needed a steady presence in the middle of the order down the stretch run.

Despite being booed in his first home series as a Yankee, adjusting to a new league, playing in the first meaningful baseball games of his entire career, and facing an entirely new type of pressure in the Bronx, Stanton found his groove at the perfect time.

Of course, it’s hard to ignore Stanton’s postseason performance in 2018. He struck out with runners on in the deciding game of the ALDS and didn’t perform well earlier in the postseason.

There’s no denying that Stanton’s struggles against Boston in the Division Series played a role in the Yankees’ early playoff exit. However, it is overblown. New York’s starting pitching was horrendous for a pair of games. J.A. Happ gave up five runs in two innings and  Luis Severino led the Yankees to the most lopsided Yankees postseason loss in franchise history by a score of 16-1.

The following season Stanton looked prepared and answered all the questions surrounding his ability to play postseason baseball in New York. He walked four times in 11 plate appearances as the Yankees took easy care of the Minnesota Twins.

Stanton showed so much emotion during that series too. In Game 1 of the ALDS, he walked to load the bases and spiked his bat with such authority it felt like he was ready to put the frustration of his past two seasons behind him.

With just a handful of games under his belt in the regular season, Stanton’s high on-base percentage (.455) proved how dangerous a hitter he remained in the eyes of the Twins staff and manager Rocco Baldelli.

Stanton appeared ready to bring his power into play in the ALCS after he took former Cy Young winner Zack Greinke deep in Game 1 but the injury bug had the last word and he would miss the majority of the series. Injury aside, Stanton proved the postseason wasn’t too big for him.

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.