The boo birds were out in the Bronx on Memorial Day, and the target of their collective ire was superstar slugger Giancarlo Stanton, who is in the midst of a slump at the plate since his return from the injured list.
The sputtering New York Yankees dropped their fourth straight game with Monday’s 3-1 loss to the rival and AL East-leading Tampa Bay Rays. Stanton, mired in a 0-for-12 stretch (including eight strikeouts) across three games since returning to lineup after battling a quad injury, went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts Monday.
During his rough Memorial Day outing, Stanton heard it from the bleachers after striking out in his final at-bat, as boos rained down from the stands at Yankee Stadium.
Following Monday’s setback, Yankees manager Aaron Boone downplayed Stanton’s struggles, saying the slugger will return to form once he gets settled in.
“He’s been back a couple days. G will be fine,” Boone said, per the New York Post. “As long as he’s healthy and starts to get his reps going, he’ll be fine.”
Stanton was one of the Yankees’ hottest hitters before hitting the IL with a nagging, early-season injury that has typified his time in New York. While the slugger attempted to refine and scale back his offseason workout regimen, the changes appear to have yielded no encouraging results at this point.
However, from April into May, Stanton enjoyed a torrid hitting stretch where he racked up a 12-game hitting streak during which he hit at a 25-for-52 clip with six home runs.
Boone believes Stanton will return to his hot-slugging ways in short order.
“It’s fair to say he’s probably dusting off some rust right now,” Boone said. “But as long as he’s healthy, he should round into form here.”
Until then, though, Stanton may have to endure the Bronx boo birds if he can’t get things going in the batter’s box.
More must-reads: