Alexander Wilson
The NY Yankees are still waiting on Giancarlo Stanton, and based on Aaron Boone’s latest update, they are going to keep waiting. Stanton has not made the kind of progress the Yankees wanted to see from his strained calf, which means a quick return is not on the table right now. That is a problem for a lineup that could use another proven power bat, even if Stanton was only giving them league-average offense before the injury.
The 36-year-old played 24 games before going down, hitting .256/.302/.422 with a 103 wRC+. Those are not monster numbers, and nobody is going to pretend he was carrying the offense. But he still gave the Bombers a legitimate threat in the middle of the order, and more importantly, he allowed them to be a little cleaner with how they rotated the outfield and designated hitter spot.
Boone’s update was not what the Yankees wanted
Boone did not sugarcoat it when he spoke this week. “It’s still lingering there. Not any worse. He’s upped what he’s been able to do. But I don’t think it allows us to clear him to really start ramping up the running yet,” Boone said.
That is the part that matters most. If Stanton is not cleared to really run, he is not close. Calf injuries can hang around, especially for older sluggers who need a stable lower half to drive the ball and get through a full game routine. The Yankees are not dealing with a final checkpoint here. They are still dealing with a player who has not even gotten to the part of rehab where the finish line starts to come into view.
One injury turned into two in a hurry
The timing has made the whole thing worse. When Stanton initially went down, the Yankees called up Jasson Dominguez to help fill the gap. That made sense. Dominguez could handle some DH work, give them athleticism in the outfield, and add a little life to a lineup that always gets longer when it has more speed and left-handed thump.
Then Dominguez crashed into the wall and suffered a low-grade AC joint sprain, which Boone said is likely to keep him out for at least a few weeks. That pushed the Yankees to call up Spencer Jones, and while the upside is obvious, he is still learning on the fly against big league pitching.
That is the uncomfortable truth here. The Yankees are not just missing Stanton. They are now missing the first replacement plan, too. Jones has talent, but they would much rather ease him into this than ask him to help cover two injuries at once.
The Yankees need Stanton, even if he was not rolling
Stanton was not lighting the world on fire before the calf strain hit. Three homers and 14 RBIs in 24 games is fine, not special. But there is still value in having a veteran hitter who can punish mistakes, hold down the DH spot, and keep everybody else from sliding into a role they are not built for.
Until Stanton gets through the running checkpoint, the Yankees are going to keep patching this together with Jones, bench bats, and whatever else Boone can piece together. That can work for a few days. It is a lot harder to live that way for two more weeks. If Stanton is still not ramping up by early next week, the smart money says this absence is going to drag deeper into May than the Yankees originally hoped.
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