WASHINGTON – The Invisible Man of the 2019 Yankees has been their most visible player of 2020.
Aaron Boone’s crew suffered their first loss of the season on Saturday as James Paxton, sporting a diminished fastball, scored just three outs in a 9-2 loss to defending champion Nationals at Nationals Park. At 1-1, the Yankees will go to the bullpenning against Patrick Corbin, the high-end arm they passed over two seasons ago, in their first game of Coronavirus Ball rubber.
There wouldn’t be much more to discuss about this contest if it wasn’t for Giancarlo Stanton, who smashed his second tape measure home run in so many games and connected much more deeply before the game, when he joined teammate Aaron Hicks on his knees during the The national anthem, the pair became the first Yankees players to make a powerful statement in these refreshingly awake times.
“Just to show that we are still in this fight,” Stanton said, referring to the battle against systemic racism. “I just wanted to reiterate that you cannot lose. It is important to keep this movement forward with a simple message, [then] Go out and play. I thought it was the right thing to do.
“Many of my teammates have not experienced some of the things that I have. … Some have. Just give them a little idea of the everyday life we have experienced growing up. I would say it is a little different now because we are popular, more aware but, at the same time, you cannot forget how things got here. ”
Whether Stanton can stay healthy, that is, the “yes” no doubt, seems to be prepared not only to be the high-impact player the Yankees know he can be, but he also serves as an important voice in the critical national discussion. that we are celebrating about race. relations.
Not bad for a guy who spent last year primarily as a topic of discussion about his durability or lack of it and, directly related to that, his outsized contract. That’s what happens when you win $ 26 million, with more than $ 200 million more until 2027, for playing only in 18 regular season games and five more (out of nine) in the playoffs, a surprising drop from his good but not great Striped maiden trip in 2018. That he would have missed opening day this year if it weren’t for the shutdown only intensified concerns about his ability to stay on the field.
He has already shown that he still has skill, period, on the field. With the Yankees losing 3-1 in the fourth inning, Stanton pulverized Erick Fedde’s fastball in the fourth inning, 3 and 0, approximately 483 feet in left center field. The exit speed of 121.3 miles per hour marked the second-hardest hit followed by Statcast since service began in 2015, according to Sarah Langs of MLB.com; Stanton also has the most-hit shot, 121.7 mph in 2018. He added a double and a walk to give him a cut line of .667 / .714 / 1.833 for 2020.
“It looks great,” said Aaron Boone. “I feel like he’s in such a good mood. … I’m really excited to know where he is now. “
Boone expressed similar enthusiasm for the brave displays of Stanton and Hicks. They will have to block out the noise to continue kneeling down during the hymn, as they both said they intended to, and will trust the kind of support DJ LeMahieu showed when he stood next to the couple and patted them. Their backs.
“We had a great team meeting before opening day,” revealed LeMahieu. “Stanton spoke in front of [about] 60 people … [He] He really said some powerful things. He wanted to make sure we were all on the same page. “
Stanton played a leading role in convincing his own teammates and the Nationals to kneel en masse for a minute before the anthem on Thursday night, and then get up together while playing the anthem. He and Hicks advanced their cause on Saturday.
“One thing I want to ensure is that I want to take the heat and be a part of this fight,” said Stanton. He is part of it. And the more you stand out on the field, the bigger the platform you’ll build to tackle the deeper things. It is a winning formula that the Yankees, and most of us, accept.
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