The New York Yankees hope to have outfielder Giancarlo Stanton available Tuesday for Game 3 of the American League Championship Series against the Houston Astros at Yankee Stadium. Stanton missed Game 2, a 3-2 loss in 11 innings, with a right quad strain. And that didn’t sit well with WFAN’s Mike Francesa. Per WFAN.com:
“I never ever get on guys about injuries … but this is a little different,” Francesa said on WFAN. “Unless you can’t walk, you’re in the lineup in the ALCS. That’s all there is to it. If you’re hurt, and you’re really hurt, fine. If there’s an iffy-ness to your injury, how do you sit out the ALCS? This is October, this is not May, this is not June, this is not July … you have to be in the lineup you’ve got to give it a try. ... If you’re day-to-day, how are you out of the lineup in the ALCS? … This is it. This is what you dream about. This is October. You had hit a home run and had a couple good at bats in Game 1 … The bottom line is you’ve got to be in the lineup. I can’t even imagine what his teammates are thinking, especially if it’s iffy. And that’s the way it was painted.”
Stanton suffered the injury running out a ground ball single in Game 1. He stayed in to hit a solo homer in what ended up being a 7-0 win over the Astros at Minute Maid Park.
On Monday, manager Aaron Boone said Stanton would have been available in Game 2 as a pinch-hitter. However, Boone also had said he wouldn’t rule out Stanton being finished for the playoffs. Stanton played just 18 regular season games in 2019. He missed approximately two months due to strains to his left biceps, left shoulder and left calf. Then he missed another two months, thanks to a right PCL strain.
Cameron Maybin took Stanton’s spot in the lineup in Game 2, another move which did not sit well with Francesa, given the return of Aaron Hicks.
“I didn’t understand how Hicks was not in the lineup. If Hicks wasn’t strong enough to be in the lineup last night he should not have been on the roster … I understand he came into the game late, but the bottom line is either he’s ready to go or he’s not ready to go. I’m not knocking Maybin … but you don’t want to bat Maybin against Verlander and against (Gerrit) Cole.”
(NJ Advance Media’s Brendan Kuty contributed to this report.)
Mike Rosenstein may be reached at mrosenstein@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @rosenstein73. Find NJ.com on Facebook.