STANTON LEADS YANKS OVER TWINS
When Giancarlo Stanton escaped South Florida this past winter in the midst of new Marlins co-owner Derek Jeter’s massive rebuild, Yankee fans had visions of the Bombers’ newest slugger whacking home runs at will in the Bronx. Perhaps Stanton would even chug past the Babe and Maris for a new franchise singleseason homer record.
After all, Stan- ton blasted 59 homers for the Marlins in 2017, en route to snagging the National League MVP award. Even when the Yankees’ 2018 home opener was snowed out, Stanton grinned at his corner locker — the same one Alex Rodriguez used to occupy — and displayed a schoolboy giddiness when asked about how his swing would fit in Yankee Stadium and its homerfriendly, short right-field porch. “I think it fits nice,” said Stanton. The righty-swinging slugger had mashed two homers in the Bombers’ 2018 season opener in Toronto on March 29, and
it was natural for every Yankee fan to think this was a small sample of the bushels of homers to come from Stanton’s bat.
Instead, there were bushels of strikeouts that followed for much of April, including two games when Stanton whiffed five times each. He had 32 strikeouts entering Monday’s game against the Twins.
But opposing players like Twins pitcher Phil Hughes didn’t buy into Stanton slumping for too much longer. Hughes, a former Yankee, called the 2018 Bombers lineup “one of the biggest threats in baseball.”
“They’ve obviously got incredible power in the middle of the lineup,” said Hughes.
Stanton, who was batting a paltry .185 entering Monday’s game, was the Yankees’ designated hitter in the cleanup spot, and reached base all five plate appearances. He was 4-for-4 with a walk, a home run and three singles and he had two RBI and three runs scored. Stanton actually heard what must have sounded a bit strange — cheering from the 39,249 home fans. Boos had rained down on him much of the earlier part of the
month.
“Still battling, man. Nothing’s easy. But it was good to get a few knocks. The team, one through nine, did a great job. I’ve been feeling more comfortable. Good day of five good at-bats,” said Stanton after the Yankees’ 14-1 demolition of the Twins. His average shot up to .224.
Yankee manager Aaron Boone said any hitter will “always love those nights,” when everything seems to be clicking, but Boone was especially impressed with Stanton’s first at-bat, when he fell behind 0-2 against Twins starter Jake Odorizzi, but recovered to work a two-out walk. His free pass kept the inning alive, and with Stanton on first and Brett Gardner on second (after he drew a leadoff walk and stole second), Gary Sanchez drilled a two-run double.
“As a hitter, you always love those nights, especially when it’s early and you’re off to a tough start,” said Boone. “Yeah, you want to start gaining some traction. That can help settle you in. First inning, battle, battle, battle, walk. A really good night for (Stanton), and hopefully something that continues to build a little bit of momentum for him towards being the guy that we know he is.”
When asked what wasn’t easy, Stanton joked, “You ever seen a 95 mph fastball?”
“This game is tough, man. We put a lot of good at-bats together. We were able to do a lot of damage,” he added. “You build off anything positive. We’re gonna hurt you one through nine. Once we’re all clicking, it’s gonna be a fun sight.”
It will be a fun sight for fans in the Bronx if Stanton and Aaron Judge reprise the 1961 season when a couple of mashers whose last names began with “M” electrified the sport with their home run feats. Roger Maris finished with 61 and Mickey Mantle with 54 that season.
More important than home run binges is another Yankee championship, of course, but the Yankees got Stanton in a trade to primarily generate offense. After a hot night at the plate in the chilly Bronx, the home fans finally got what they paid for from their new masher.