Stanton’s return vital for Yankees

The good news is that Giancarlo Stanton seems to be improving with each day, so in a few weeks he will be rejoining a New York Yankees lineup that needs him badly. The bad news is that the “Bronx Bombers” may not have the luxury of ‘a few weeks’ if they continue to play as they are right now.

The New York team has lost eleven of their last fifteen games and while they still have a solid ten game lead in the divisional race over the second place team (held by the Toronto Blue Jays), the squad is going through their worst stretch of the season and in the process, have lost the best record in the American League heading into the postseason.

The Yankees have been faltering on several fronts, but it has been their offense that has been noticeably missing, with the exception of Aaron Judge, who has been having his best offensive stretch of the season. The Yankees, who average 5.14 runs per game on the season (second in MLB), have seen their run production drop significantly. During the second half, their run differential is negative (-2), unlike what happened in the first half where they scored 497 runs and conceded 298 against.

Undoubtedly, Stanton’s absence has hurt the lineup even though he is not having an exemplary year. His 24 home runs and 61 RBIs, coupled with his .807 OPS are missed by a team that hasn’t been able to fill the void of his absence.

“I’m still trying to get my rhythm back, so I need a few days to be sure I can play a whole game,” Stanton said at the conclusion of practice Monday, meaning that although there is optimism with the recovery, his return is not as close as fans would like. However, it’s clear that Aaron Judge can’t carry an offense where current starters are batting .235 with an OPS of .677, which will force things to speed up a bit.