Disheartening Giancarlo Stanton injury update could signal end of his Yankees career

I'll admit it: I under-reacted when Giancarlo Stanton first went down running the bases in Houston earlier this season. At this stage of his career, Stanton is bound to miss a month and a half with a soft-tissue injury at some point. Why not April/May instead of September/October?

As it turns out, this particular Stanton injury was far worse than expected - because it seemed far less severe than most of his maladies, yet somehow has had a larger impact.

Initially diagnosed as a mild calf strain after the 36-year-old DH gingerly ran to third after hitting a rocket double followed by JC Escarra's line drive off the left-field wall in Houston, Stanton's timeline shifted repeatedly as he tried to fend off something that seemed so minor at the time of impact. On May 6, it was noted that he'd be down longer than the minimum 10 days. In mid-June, when most believed he'd be back shortly, he instead reinjured the calf running. While the team didn't want to admit at the time that he was back to square one, it certainly sounded like it.

Now, Aaron Boone has informed us that Stanton is doing treadmill work, but still can't run. Running has been his undoing more often than not in recent years, but this series of updates genuinely makes it feel as if the task is impossible for him in his current bodily form. And that is downright depressing.

Yankees' baffling Giancarlo Stanton injury timeline could end his career in the Bronx

The Yankees theoretically have the depth to weather a Stanton injury in the lineup, but they've been tested to their upper limits this summer, making his absence feel catastrophic as the batting order sheds talent around him. This is to say nothing of the leadership void he's left. Stanton, in recent years, has been the one to step up and forcefully say the Yankees don't get swept at home. He's the one who reminded the team after taking the first two in San Francisco to open the year that winning two isn't good enough, and they'd regret not laying everything on the line to take the full trio. The locker room clearly lacks for forceful messages of focus right now. Perhaps a rehabbing Stanton isn't up to the task. Perhaps the slugger's message rings depressingly hollow as he realizes he has no way of leading by example.

2027 is Stanton's final year under contract in pinstripes before a team option takes over entering the 2028 season. With a lockout looming and a return date feeling more abstract by the day, the Yankees may not even need to worry about the financial hit of ending his contract early much longer. It may just naturally expire before he has a chance to return. His impact has already been sorely missed.

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