Aaron Boone's response to Giancarlo Stanton's inability to run is Yankees insanity

It's a reality New York Yankee fans have accepted long ago: Giancarlo Stanton cannot run. All he's good for is bashing majestic, one-of-a-kind home runs and cashing in with runners in scoring position. And guess what? We'll take that. We still wish it were better, though.

A lot of the problematic chatter surrounding Stanton has mostly been a reaction from the fanbase because of the front office's unwillingness to spend after acquiring him in a trade with the Marlins. At that point, it was clear the organization simply chose Stanton over players like Bryce Harper, Manny Machado, Corey Seager, Freddie Freeman and Zack Wheeler; and those are just a few names that were passed on in the subsequent offseasons.

The difficult situation with Stanton is that he's a $25 million-per-year DH who is locked into that spot, giving manager Aaron Boone less flexibility. When Stanton is pounding the ball, it's one of the more dominant advantages in the league. When he's slumping? It's a massive weight on the lineup that cannot be fixed. When he's injured? Same thing; the Yankees lose a middle-of-the-order presence and have no solution.

But the running officially became a national issue last season when Stanton was seen lightly jogging the bases on multiple occasions and questions started to be asked. It became clear that he literally could not push himself or else he was at great risk for injury. Look at this season when he changed speeds too quickly and missed over a month with a hamstring injury.

On Saturday in Game 1 of the ALDS, Stanton's running cost the Yankees two runs in the narrow 6-5 victory. He couldn't beat out an infield hit that probably any other batter would have been able to, and he couldn't score from first base after Royals outfielders had trouble corralling a hit in the gap.

Boone was asked about that limitation and how it's affected the Yankees. Though his response was diplomatic, it was still out of this world.

“He’s more than half ,” Boone said. “It’s a controlled gait that he knows he has to get into. He’s burned himself when he tries to throttle back up or down. That’s when he knows he’s been (compromised). It is something you kind of have to live with. Whether you’ve seen it over the years with a particular player who is incredibly slow but still impactful, it’s just something we have to accept.”

But Stanton isn't David Ortiz or Edgar Martinez. He was, once upon a time, but now he's a middling 25-homer power bat. That sounds crazy to say, but his lack of availability and skill set beyond hitting really cool home runs has been an ongoing narrative since 2019. Sure, you take that on your team, but the cost and fit are beyond imperfect.

And the fact this has to be addressed with the media during a playoff run? And Boone is the one issuing a nonsensical response? Objectively insane.