New York — The Yankees clubhouse in Texas went silent that August night. It was early in the month, and another crushing loss had left the team slumped at their lockers. Frustration filled the room as players stared down, their season slipping away.
Then Giancarlo Stanton stood up. When a quiet giant finally spoke up, the earth stumbled.
“With every player sitting in front of his locker, and with the coaches and staffers on hand, the respected veteran went off for about five minutes,” according to Brendon Kutty of The Athletic. “When Stanton was finished imploring his teammates to play up to what he considered their immense potential, nobody else spoke.”
For five minutes, the 6-foot-6 Yankees slugger spoke from the heart. The usually reserved veteran let his emotions pour out. His message was simple — they were better than what they were showing. Much better.
“A wakeup call,” Aaron Judge told reporters this week, recalling that private Aug. 4 meeting that changed everything for the Yankees.
Now, with the Yankees facing elimination after losing the first two games of the American League Division Series to the Blue Jays, they need that same spark again.
The moment everything changed for the Yankees
Corey Sipkin for the NY POST
The loss that triggered Stanton’s speech was one of the toughest of the season. The Yankees had blown a lead to the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Field. Closer Devin Williams allowed a game-tying homer in the ninth inning, and reliever Jake Bird gave up a three-run shot in the 10th to end it.
That defeat followed a humiliating three-game sweep in Miami, where Stanton had spent the first eight years of his career. The Yankees were in third place in the AL East, 5½ games back, and had gone 22-30 over their previous 52 games.
Something had to change.
“I knew we were so much better than that at the time,” Stanton said last week after the Yankees beat Boston in the Wild Card Series. “It was going to take a lot more than that (effort) to be able to have moments like this.”
Giancarlo Stanton with @M_Marakovits after the Yankees advance to the ALDS!
Stanton refused to reveal the full details of his talk, but he made clear it wasn’t easy for him to speak up.
“Nothing I want to do,” Stanton said. “Sometimes you have to do things you don’t always do (or) don’t want to do. I can say I felt pretty bad about it for a while afterward. I meant no harm with it.”
What the Yankees players heard that night
For several players, that night stood out as a turning point.
“It was the first time I really had a one-player meeting,” infielder José Caballero said.
Third baseman Ryan McMahon said the team needed that jolt. “We kind of needed somebody to get (on) our asses like that,” McMahon said.
Another Yankees player, who spoke anonymously to describe the moment candidly, said it was a side of Stanton none of them had seen before. The veteran’s usual calm demeanor was gone. That night in Texas, he spoke like a captain.
Rookie Ben Rice said Stanton’s honesty mattered most. “Just kind of him acknowledging the elephant in the room, that we can be better,” Rice said. “And that things couldn’t keep sliding like that. It was good.”
The credentials that gave Stanton’s words weight
Stanton’s words carried authority because of who he is. Over 16 seasons, he has hit 453 home runs — 40th on the all-time list and the most among active players. This season, he passed legends Jeff Bagwell, Vladimir Guerrero, and Carl Yastrzemski.
He won the 2017 National League MVP and once signed the largest contract in American sports history — a 13-year, $325 million deal with the Marlins in 2014. He’s been selected to five All-Star Games and built a reputation as one of baseball’s hardest-working sluggers.
“A guy like Big G, who has been around the game and has been around a lot of teams and had a lot of great moments,” Judge said. “A coach can say it or a front office person can say it, but hearing it from one of your guys that’s out there battling with you every day … it’s a good little reality check.”
Catcher Austin Wells said Stanton doesn’t talk often, which made his message more powerful. “He’s massive,” Wells said of the 245-pound designated hitter. “He really often doesn’t speak his mind. So when he does, it’s usually very important.”
How the Yankees responded after the Texas talk
The impact was immediate. The mood changed inside the Yankees clubhouse, and their performance followed. After that meeting, the Yankees went 34-15 to close the regular season — the best record in baseball during that stretch.
“It was good for everybody to hear,” Judge said. “And for all of us to kind of look in the mirror, like, ‘Hey, am I really giving it my best? Am I really giving it my all? Time to turn around and get things moving.'”
After missing 70 games earlier in the season with elbow issues, Stanton returned in June and quickly found his rhythm. He hit .273 with 24 home runs, 66 RBIs, and a .944 OPS in 77 games. He even played right field again for the first time since 2023.
That speech in Texas didn’t just change the mood — it helped reset the Yankees’ entire mindset.
The Yankees find themselves in crisis mode again
Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP
Now the Yankees are back in familiar territory. Following Sunday’s 13-7 loss in Toronto, they trail 2-0 in the best-of-five Division Series. One more defeat ends their season.
Game 1 was a nightmare. The Blue Jays rolled 10-1. Game 2 saw rookie Trey Yesavage strike out 11 batters and hold the Yankees hitless through 5 1/3 innings before Toronto pulled away again. Daulton Varsho crushed three home runs in the blowout.
It marked the first time in franchise history the Yankees gave up double-digit runs in consecutive postseason games.
Stanton has yet to find his rhythm this October. After previous playoff heroics, he’s hitting just .150 with one walk and no homers in 20 at-bats. He went 2-for-5 with a double Sunday, but New York needs his power surge now more than ever.
Can history repeat itself at Yankee Stadium?
The Yankees return home for Game 3 on Tuesday night at 8:08 p.m. Carlos Rodon will start for New York against Shane Bieber for Toronto.
There’s still a reason for belief. The Yankees just eliminated Boston in the Wild Card Series after dropping Game 1. They’ve also overcome 0-2 Division Series deficits before — in 2017 against Cleveland and in 2001 against Oakland.
Manager Aaron Boone tried to stay optimistic despite the losses. “There’s been a lot of weird things that have happened in baseball this year,” Boone said.
Stanton, meanwhile, kept the focus on the moment. “You can’t look to the whole series,” he said. “You’ve got to go one at a time. Execute each inning, each pitch and not look too far ahead.”
The Yankees can look back to that August night in Texas when Stanton’s message turned everything around. They can remember the fire that pulled them out of their slump.
“We’re all professionals,” Judge said. “But I think we all need a little kick in the ass every now and then.”
As they face elimination in the Bronx, the Yankees need more than talk — they need action. But sometimes, the right words can be the spark that brings a team back to life.
The only question now is whether Stanton’s fire can ignite them again.
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