Stanton hasn’t talked to Jeter
Giancarlo Stanton was raised on baseball at Dodger Stadium. He played in the Tujunga Little League, and his father took him to Chavez Ravine to see all the great hitters of his time, including Barry Bonds, Ken Griffey Jr., and Mike Piazza.
Stanton returned to Dodger Stadium on Wednesday as one of the great hitters of his time. He was honored as the National League winner of the Hank Aaron Award, presented to the top offensive performer in each league. Jose Altuve of the Houston Astros won the American League award.
Stanton hit 59 home runs for the Miami Marlins, the most in a season since Bonds hit a record 73 in 2001.
Stanton said he has had no communications with the new Marlins ownership group, led by Derek Jeter. The Marlins are expected to explore trades for Stanton, who has $295 million remaining on his contract, with the San Francisco Giants, St. Louis Cardinals, Philadelphia Phillies and Boston Red Sox among teams believed to be interested. The Marlins have posted a losing record in each of Stanton’s eight seasons.
Stanton said he is not rooting for — or against — his hometown Dodgers.
“Whoever wins, wins,” he said. “It won’t be me.”
Union issues
Tony Clark, the executive director of the players’ union, said the possibility of expansion has been a popular topic among baseball leadership in recent months.
If the Oakland Athletics and Tampa Bay Rays can get a new ballpark in their market — still a big if, in each case — the league could add two teams for a total of 32. Montreal; Mexico City; Charlotte, N.C., and Portland, Ore., would be among the candidate cities.
“The idea of expansion has been bantered about for some time,” Clark said. “I don’t know that anything is going to happen tomorrow.”
Clark also said he is “optimistic” that the union and the league can agree on pace-of-play rules for next season.
In the absence of an agreement, commissioner Rob Manfred can unilaterally impose changes, including a pitch clock.
Among the factors in longer games: the rise of the uppercut swing, with more home runs and more strikeouts.
Swiss army player
The Dodgers have used Chris Taylor and Enrique Hernandez at a variety of positions this season, with Hernandez playing everywhere except pitcher and catcher, and Taylor starting at five positions.
The Astros have their super-utility player in Marwin Gonzalez, who has played all four infield positions and both corner outfield spots this season, and hit .303 with 23 home runs and 90 runs batted in.
“He’s carried us in a lot of different portions of the season, offensively and defensively,” said manager A.J. Hinch, who called Gonzalez “the answer in one person.”
“If I wanted to give Altuve a day off during the season, he can play second. Short[stop] for [Carlos] Correa, third for [Alex] Bregman, first for Yuli [Gurriel],” Hinch said.
“It’s like having multiple players in one. And not just that he can do it, he can do it well.
Gonzalez homered against closer Kenley Jansen leading off the top of the nine to force extra innings Wednesday.
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