STANTON HITS WALK-OFF HR; METS BLOW TWO LEADS AT COORS

Giancarlo Stanton’s first true Yankee moment was worth the wait.

The $295 million slugger finally delivered in the clutch at the end of Game No. 71, getting a ninthinning hanger from Seattle righty Ryan Cook and pulverizing the 0-2 pitch into the Bronx night.

So this is what Stanton meant before the season when he said he felt “sorry for the baseballs” upon becoming a member of Murderers’ Row 2.0, albeit a highly-compensated outsider who was going to have to earn his pinstripes.

“I mean, that ball was killed,” Aaron Boone said after Stanton’s walk-off homer — a 453foot, two-run missile with two outs in the ninth that got out in a hurry — completed an impressive 7-5 come-from-behind victory over the Mariners Wednesday evening. “He’s a different animal.” Stanton watched his 117.9 mph rocket fly away before going into his home run trot with a huge smile on his face, letting out a couple of “Woos!” as he rounded the bases. His elated teammates were all there waiting for him at the plate ready to celebrate, including Masahiro Tanaka, who hopped out from the dugout on a pair of injured hamstrings.

Stanton wound up before flinging his helmet in the air, as Brett Gardner doused him with a Gatorade shower.

“I was deciding whether to throw it at them, bowl it at them or throw it up,” Stanton said. “It’s cool. It’s a fun moment.”

Yankees fans had been waiting for that moment for a while, growing more and more impatient with every strikeout, often booing Stanton vociferously.

But there would only be cheers on this night, Stanton’s 18th homer of the year easily serving as his biggest to date. It was Stanton’s first career walkoff homer in pinstripes, his first since April 18, 2014 and No. 4 overall.

“You have to get a pitch up. You’re battling there,” Stanton said. “There was a chance he could spike a few, but if he leaves one there you’ve got to put a barrel on it.”

Stanton came into the at-bat with five hits in his previous 38 at-bats in late and close situations. Prior to his 2-for-4 performance on Wednesday, Stanton had a .681 OPS against righties (1.193 lefties) and a .699 OPS at home (.947 away).

Still, for all the questions about whether he could handle the big stage and the pressure that comes with it, Stanton, who transformed himself into an NL MVP last season on June 19, 2017 by going to a closed stance which led to a historic home run binge, said he wasn’t concerned.

He also said he hadn’t changed anything in his stance on Monday, even though it looked like he’d made an adjustment following his four-hit performance in the nightcap against the Nationals. There would be a homer on Tuesday, and another on Wednesday.

“I’m not worried about me, personally,” Stanton said. “For the way our team battled back, it was huge I could step up in that moment. Me, I’ll be fine.”

The never-say-die Bombers have amassed 23 come-frombehind wins. They are 27 games over .500, mostly without Stanton looking like himself.

It’s a dangerous team with a lot of possibilities, made even greater when Giancarlo Stanton is hitting like Giancarlo Stanton, making everyone feel sorry for the baseballs.

This moment, his first true Yankee moment, was worth the wait.

“Until we have no outs left we’re not worried about it,” Stanton said. “It’s huge. Anything to help us win — especially the way we came back — couldn’t ask for anything more.”