When the Yankees opened the regular season against the Blue Jays in Toronto nearly three weeks ago, Giancarlo Stanton was penciled in as the designated hitter in the No. 3 spot.
That might not be Stanton’s place in the lineup when the Blue Jays visit the Stadium later this week, according to manager Aaron Boone.
While speaking to reporters after the Yankees’ 9-1 loss to the Miami Marlins on Tuesday night, Boone said that he “might flirt with” moving the slumping Stanton down in the batting order, but “not too far.”
“He’s one at-bat away from getting it locked back in and then the last thing you want is him down in the order getting pitched around,” Boone said. “He’s too premier of a player and an at-bat away in my eyes from locking it in. So I might juggle with the top five or six, but as far as moving down significantly? No.”
In this upcoming four-game set with Toronto, which begins Thursday, the Yankees are scheduled to face three straight right-handers, followed by veteran southpaw Jaime Garcia on Sunday. Perhaps Boone could split up his righty hitters with lefty Didi Gregorius in the No. 3 hole and Stanton as the cleanup man. Perhaps Stanton could swap places with Gary Sanchez, who’s currently hitting fifth. There are some options, and none of them seem like a stretch at the moment.
Nevertheless, the Yankees need Stanton to climb out of his early hole, as he’s hitting an abysmal .086 (3-for-35) at Yankee Stadium with a home run, three RBI, and a whopping 20 strikeouts. In a short reunion series with the Marlins, Stanton went 0-for-7, and the boo birds sang a tune once again.
“Pretty simple. Worry about the positive things, even if it’s not very many things,” Stanton told the YES Network. “That’s all you can do. You worry about that, you’re gonna keep twirling down. Keep working. It’s early. Not too many [positives], but you’ve got to own up to it and understand and find a way to get better to get out of it.”
Stanton was visibly angry with his performance at the plate on Tuesday. After popping out in his second at-bat during the third inning, Stanton slammed his bat down in frustration, and television cameras caught his thousand-yard stare when he returned to the dugout.
In New York, one side effect of a slump is an onslaught of boos from fans who express tough love. Another side effect could be a tweak to the lineup — for better or worse.
“I see a guy who’s really focused. Obviously he’s frustrated,” Boone told the New York Daily News. “You want to go out there and perform, especially when you’re MVP, and obviously he expects a lot from himself. I think his focus is tremendous and I’m really confident that the work he’s putting in…I’m really confident that once he gets rolling, it’ll be a juggernaut. I don’t worry; I want him just for peace of mind get going a little bit and just settle in and get into the rhythm of the season. But long-term, he’s too good for it not to start happening.”
Stanton is too good — the numbers on his baseball card prove that. Of course he will turn things around. It’s just a matter of when, not if.
If you want to connect with Tom Hanslin, email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter @tomhanslin.
