Giancarlo Stanton, currently sidelined because of a hamstring strain, said his frequent stints on the injured list are “unacceptable” because they put the New York Yankees “in a really tough spot.”
Stanton was placed on the 10-day IL last Sunday and is expected to miss six weeks. The former National League MVP discussed his latest injury Thursday, expressing frustration over the impact that his absence has on the Yankees lineup.
“It’s unacceptable, (being injured) this often, right now,” Stanton told reporters. “The team relies on me. I can’t have this continue to happen and put us in a really tough spot we weren’t prepared for. It’s my duty and responsibility to be out there.”
It marks the fifth consecutive season that Stanton, 33, will spend time on the IL. The slugger has missed 223 of 546 possible games (41%) with the Yankees over the previous four seasons.
Stanton has been sidelined with a strained right biceps and strained PCL in his right knee (2019), strained left hamstring (2020), strained left quadriceps (2021), and right ankle inflammation and left Achilles tendinitis (2022).
Yankees manager Aaron Boone said earlier this week that the 6-foot-6, 245-pound Stanton “works very hard to try and avoid these things,” but the five-time All-Star acknowledged Thursday that he may have to make changes to prevent future injuries.
“You got to make little alterations to try to improve trying to stay on the field and try to not have this happen,” he said. “But there’s an original foundation that’s there regardless, so you got to make little tweaks however that may be.”
The Yankees have won two of their first three games without Stanton but have scored a total of just seven runs over that stretch. New York went 11-17 in the 28 games Stanton missed last season.
Stanton had just started heating up before suffering the left hamstring strain last Saturday, batting .313 (10-for-32) with two home runs and seven RBI in his last eight games.
“I mean, the disbelief and disappointment at (the timing of) this is hard to put into words and comprehend, and it’s very frustrating,” he said.
ESPN’s Marly Rivera contributed to this report.