Big blow to Yankees, Giancarlo Stanton not to return before early June

Giancarlo Stanton of the New York Yankees
giancarlo818/instagram
John Allen
Wednesday April 19, 2023

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Giancarlo Stanton is likely to be out of action for six weeks because of a strained left hamstring. This is the latest injury for the New York Yankees slugger, who has been hurt a lot lately. This time, which isn’t too different from other seasons, Giancarlo Stanton is on the injured list with a left hamstring strain. The official diagnosis is that he won’t be able to play for close to two months.

Since the Yankees bought him from the Miami Marlins in 2018, Giancarlo Stanton has not played a full season for them.

Giancarlo Stanton lost a big blow

He hurt himself on Saturday when Giancarlo Stanton was running out a two-run double against the Minnesota Twins in the seventh inning. The next day, the Yankees put him on the injured list. This was his seventh time on the injured list in his five years with the Yankees and his 11th time in his 14 years in the major leagues.

Before Tuesday’s series opener against the Los Angeles Angels, Aaron Boone, the manager of the Yankees, said that Giancarlo Stanton would be out for six weeks.

Giancarlo Stanton missed 223 games in the last four seasons. He went out of the 2019 season following a strained right biceps and then a right knee problem. Next year, a strained left hamstring forced him out. The Yankees sent him to the injured list in May 2021 after he suffered a strained left quadriceps muscle. Giancarlo Stanton had a right ankle injury in May 2022. Two months later in July, he was again on the injured list for Achilles tendinitis.

During his time with the Marlins, he missed time because of right knee surgery in 2012, a right hamstring strain in 2013, a broken left hand in 2015, and a left groin strain in 2016.

The 33-year-old has been an All-Star five times. In 13 games so far this season, he hit four home runs and 11 RBIs. His career average is .264, and he has 382 home runs and 982 RBIs.

At the time of the trade, Giancarlo Stanton had a $325 million, 13-year contract with a remaining balance of $295 million. As part of the trade, the Marlins will pay the Yankees $30 million in three equal payments of $5 million on July 1 and October 1 of each of the years 2026, 2027, and 2028.

Giancarlo Stanton
(AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

Stanton played only 53% of Yankees games

Even with the long time frame, Giancarlo Stanton wouldn’t be back on the field until early June at the earliest.

He has had a lot of trouble with injuries over the duration of his playing career, especially when Giancarlo Stanton played for the Yankees. The hamstring strain is the latest one. All of his injuries have been to his legs, such as his hamstring, quadriceps, knee, or Achilles.

Giancarlo Stanton could only play in 290 of 546 regular season games from 2019 to 2022 because of injuries to his lower body. He played 110 games last year despite having problems with his ankle and Achilles. When he came back from the injured list in June, he hit only .166/.272/.425 for the rest of the season. Giancarlo Stanton, who is 33, is off to a good start this year, hitting .269/.296/.558 with four home runs.

Giancarlo Stanton has played five games in the outfield this season, but he is mostly a designated hitter (DH), and the Yankees are likely to switch players in and out of the DH spot while he is out. DJ LeMahieu, who had a major toe injury over the offseason and missed a few games last week because of a quad injury, could get a lot of DH at-bats in the short term.

When people see Giancarlo Stanton, they can tell right away that he’s built like a tank because his muscles stick out of the Yankees’ custom pinstripe uniforms. With all the injuries to his lower body, you might wonder if he does any stretching to stay loose and flexible.

The Yankees and their fans are hoping that this will be the last time Giancarlo Stanton has to miss time because of an injury. Given what has happened in the past, the hope could fail again.

Other injuries update

Boone also said that center fielder Harrison Bader would most likely begin a minor league injury rehab assignment on Friday. A strained left oblique muscle has kept him out of the lineup since spring training.

On Thursday, Severino will take part in live batting practice at Yankee Stadium. He informed reporters that he doesn’t know how many pitches he’ll throw, but that he’s in no discomfort.

Third baseman Josh Donaldson, who has been on the IL with a right hamstring injury, began a rehab assignment with Double-A Somerset on Tuesday. But, Boone said that he felt some hamstring discomfort during the game and would not be activated on Wednesday.

Jonathan Loaisiga is set to return to the mound later this week and his elbow problem is likely to be over.

carlos-rodon-new-york-yankees
AP

Carlos Rodon’s rehabilitation prolongs

Carlos Rodon, who has been sidelined since spring training with a strained left forearm, is still affected by his back. Although Rodon has entirely recovered from a left forearm issue that has kept him out since early March, the southpaw is now struggling with back stiffness, which is slowing his recovery.

Rodon threw a bullpen session on Monday, but his back was “barking,” according to manager Aaron Boone. He has been suffering from a back problem since last week, and it has yet to go away.

As a consequence, Boone claims they’re sending him for testing. The Yankees will wait for the outcome before making any decisions. Rodon signed a six-year, $162 million contract with the Yankees in the summer. After injuring his forearm in his first and only spring start, the lefty has been on the IL ever since.

“I think it’s frustrating for him, certainly,” Boone said. “Again, elbow’s good. I don’t think this is any big deal, other than a nuisance that’s slowing him down a little bit. We definitely know he’s going to be worth the wait. We just want to make sure he’s good to go when that time comes.”

If Rodon’s bullpen session on Monday had gone smoothly, he would have moved on to live batting practice before a rehab assignment. Rodon’s rehabilitation, though, remains on pause until his back recovers.

“We gotta kind of get the back situation calmed down a little bit,” Boone said. “He has been pushing along, we just want to get back that’s kind of a nuisance thing right now calmed down.”

Rodon had an injury-plagued career before joining the Yankees.

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