28-year-old outfielder Giancarlo Stanton is having yet another standout season in the Bronx.
Stanton was traded to the New York Yankees from the Miami Marlins during the offseason, and he had a very bad start to the season. However, he has worked his way back up to having numbers right around where they should be.
Stanton is now in a hot stretch. He’s homered in five of his last six games. Most of them have been meaningful home runs, as well. Giancarlo’s hot streak could not be coming at a better time, either, as Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez will each be out with injuries until early September.
When Judge went down with a broken wrist, the Yankees originally planned to have Stanton play right field almost every day. They also planned to rotate Neil Walker, Miguel Andujar, and, to a lesser extent, Greg Bird in and out between first base, third base, and the DH spot. Shane Robinson would be up as a temporary fourth outfielder in hopes that Clint Frazier will make a swift recovery from post-concussion migraines and return to be the fourth outfielder. That plan hasn’t worked out.
Frazier still has no real timetable for a return. He has been hitting a little bit, and he has had a lot of “good” days, but he has also had a few bad days. You have to feel bad for the guy.
Meanwhile, it recently came to light that Giancarlo Stanton is nursing a leg injury. While Stanton’s injury has not impacted his ability to perform, he and the Yankees have agreed that he will be strictly in the DH spot for the foreseeable future.
Turns out this fourth outfielder is playing a lot more than "once a week." Shane Robinson makes his fifth straight start. Also 7 of 8, 8 of 11, and 10 of 15. https://t.co/Qb5HPr3Ik5
— James Smyth (@JamesSmyth621) August 11, 2018
Robinson has seen a lot of action lately, and it feels like everyone but Aaron Boone agrees that he shouldn’t ever really play. Even Sunday, Robinson finally wasn’t in the starting lineup, but he came in as a defensive replacement despite the fact that he isn’t a top-tier speed guy and he has a noodle arm.
Sugar Shane has run into a home run and a couple of semi-timely successful plate appearances, even though they look like they are accidental. His overall line speaks for itself, however: .138/.242/.241 (36 wRC+).
Yeah, Shane is no good.
The Yankees reportedly attempted to acquire another outfielder before the deadline a few weeks ago, but the price tags were too high. The team could technically still get one off of waivers until the end of August, but at this point, it seems like they’re just going to wait it out until Judge or Sanchez return.
The Yankees have played Neil Walker in right field for the last two games. This is a new position for Walker, but he’s one of the team’s hottest hitters, so keeping him in the lineup is a must.
With Gleyber Torres back from the DL and Greg Bird pretty firmly entrenched at first base, Walker has been forced to play third base, DH, and right field. He’s handled it with grace, playing a silently electric defensive third base. He hasn’t hurt the team in right field yet. I don’t think many fans expect lights-out defense from Walker as long as he stays pretty hot at the dish.
Hopefully, Judge and Sanchez will both come back hot in September and Giancarlo Stanton can stay hot while healing up whatever is aching his lower half. Right now, however, those three incidents are responsible for Shane Robinson being shoved in Yankee fans’ faces day in and day out.
Featured Image via Flickr/Arturo Pardavila III
