Giancarlo Stanton was placed on the injured list Sunday due to a hamstring strain. On Monday, the New York Yankees learned that he will likely miss at least four to six weeks due to the injury, according to Brendan Kuty of The Athletic.
The injury was initially downplayed some but an MRI Sunday night revealed the extent of the injury to be a Grade 2 strain.
The Yankees recalled infielder Oswald Peraza to take Stanton’s place on the roster but with news of how long he’ll be out another move could follow.
Stanton batted .269/.296/.558 through his first 52 at-bats, adding four home runs and three doubles. His walk rate and strikeout rates were both uncharacteristically low, as he’s been making more contact than usual. Stanton was arguably off to his best offensive start since his MVP campaign in 2017.
The Yankees acquired Stanton that subsequent December — trading Starlin Castro, Jose Devers and Jorge Guzman to the Marlins — but injuries, particularly lower-body injuries, have been a recurring theme since. Only twice in the last five seasons has he reached 500 plate appearances.
Stanton has been placed on the injured list a total of 10 times dating back to 2019. As noted by MLB Trade Rumors’ Steve Adams, eight of those injuries have been leg injuries including his hamstring, quad and Achilles.
Stanton, 33, has four years (plus a team option for 2028) and $118M remaining on his contract, a 13-year deal he agreed to with the Marlins just three years before they dealt him away.
Dealing him elsewhere is likely not a consideration for New York unless the Yankees wanted to swallow a significant portion of that remaining contract, which seems unlikely.
The deal also includes a full no-trade clause and Stanton has 10-and-5 rights (10 years in the majors, five with the Yankees) so he would certainly have some say in a final destination if he were to be dealt.
Instead, the Yankees and Stanton have to hope that somehow he can find a way to stay on the field.
