The American League Championship Series was proof that Giancarlo Stanton was really a phenomenal player in his own right. However, it seems that there will be major concerns moving forward as his sore elbow has been quite a questionable part of the game as he now seeks to rehab his elbow moving forward – at least before.

Stanton has proved his worth over the years, and his return to George M. Steinbrenner Field was a show of force – proving that he is still indeed one of the best performers in the game at this point in time, which says a lot about how he is expected to bring his big game to the next level now more than ever.

For that to happen, however, Stanton will need to recover at a drastic scale – considering that he is slated to miss out on the Opening Day at the very least. New York is coming in as a heavy pick to win the World Series this year despite falling short to the Los Angeles Dodgers last season. Stanton, at this point, should well be among the best picks to bring the high-level energy that the team needs to make a thriving case in the season.

Stanton in Doubt

Despite reporting to the Yankees’ training, Stanton has been really working hard to get back on track at this point. He underwent a mandatory physical exam for the team, and the results weren’t really much promising to begin with. However, there are high hopes that the star will still manage to get healthy before the season begins.

“He was doing stuff [in the offseason] and then he kind of shut down and got treatments,” Boone said. “It’s just something we don’t want to rush, if we can get to a really good spot and know we’re going to have to probably deal with some maintenance with it throughout the year. We don’t want to force anything too early.”

Boone mentioned that Stanton played through an injury in 2024, which became particularly bothersome to him after the All-Star break. His performance took a hit in the second half, as he slashed .210/.292/.446 with nine home runs and 27 RBIs over 45 games. In the first half, he had a much stronger showing, posting a .246/.302/.492 line with 18 homers and 45 RBIs in 69 games.

However, his struggles were quickly overshadowed by his postseason heroics, where he delivered a .273/.339/.709 slash line, including three doubles, seven homers, and 16 RBIs across 14 games against the Royals, Guardians, and Dodgers.

Staying Healthy is a Challenge

Staying healthy has been a challenge for Stanton, who spent a month on the injured list last season due to a left hamstring strain. Most of his injuries, however, have been related to his lower body. Over the past four years, he’s had multiple IL stints for issues with his left quadriceps, right ankle, left Achilles, and twice for his left hamstring.

If Stanton isn’t ready for Opening Day, Boone may rotate the DH spot among several options, including team captain Aaron Judge. Boone has indicated that Cody Bellinger will shift from center field to right field on days when Judge serves as the DH.

“He’s a huge part of our lineup, especially now that we’re a bit more left-handed,” Boone said. “Taking a big right-handed bat out of there would make us a little unbalanced.”

Boone also mentioned that outfielder Trent Grisham has been dealing with a hamstring strain he picked up during the offseason. Grisham will be “a little bit behind” the other position players but has been running at nearly full speed as of Sunday.