Reigning MVP gets crystal-clear message from fans in 1st home game
Considering the way New York Yankees slugger Giancarlo Stanton hits when he’s on a hot streak, one might assume that smashing balls 450 feet away is easy for him.
But just because Stanton is a natural doesn’t mean he can struggle mightily as well, as evidenced by an 0-for-5 performance Tuesday where he struck out in every single one of his at-bats.
After hitting two home runs in his Yankees debut last week, Stanton has gone just just 1-for-14. Moreover, his worst game of the season came in New York’s home opener, meaning that Yankee fans who paid to see the slugger’s first home game in pinstripes were disappointed.
And those fans were not afraid to let Stanton, who was named National League MVP last year with the Miami Marlins, know how they felt.
Facing Tampa Bay Rays reliever Austin Pruitt in the bottom of the seventh inning, Stanton struck out on a fastball, prompting boos from the crowd at Yankee Stadium.
Yes, Giancarlo Stanton is already getting booed by Yankees fans in his first home game of 2018. pic.twitter.com/F5LlCzV9WQ
— Aldo Soto (@AldoSoto21) April 3, 2018
Stanton came up again in the next inning and struck out once more, this time on a slider from Rays reliever Sergio Romo. Again, Yankee fans booed the slugger.
More boos for Giancarlo Stanton. This time Michael Kay addresses the Yankees fans booing. pic.twitter.com/8ivtGl327A
— Aldo Soto (@AldoSoto21) April 3, 2018
Yankees announcer Michael Kay thought the reaction was a bit much.
“How about this crowd?” Kay said. “That’s a little harsh.”
Stanton himself, though, told reporters after the game he thought he probably deserved it.
“You put up a performance like that, you should get some boos,” he said, according to the New York Post. “I was awful today.”
Until Tuesday, Stanton had never struck out five times in one game. It was only the eighth time a Yankee has “accomplished” that feat.
Thankfully for the Yankees, Stanton’s poor performance at the plate didn’t ruin an 11-4 victory. Yankees second baseman Didi Gregorius had a career day, with two home runs and eight runs batted in.
“He picked me up, too,” Stanton said of his teammate. “That’s what a clean-up hitter does. You clean up the garbage in front of you.”
Yankees manager Aaron Boone wasn’t particularly concerned about Stanton’s recent struggles.
“There’s going to be a lot of days when we hop on his back,” Boone said. “For being that kind of day, I actually thought he looked OK at the plate. I thought he was close on a couple. … It’s just one of those days. When you’re a big-time slugger like that, there will be days like that.
“The fact that we were still able to roll out 11, I don’t even blink at it.”
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