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The New York Yankees have found success in the postseason in large part due to Giancarlo Stanton playing at an elite level. When the postseason comes around, Stanton always seems to deliver for the Yankees, and that’s been the case in 2024.
In 19 at-bats, the 34-year-old has posted a 1.244 OPS and has two home runs with five RBI.
While Stanton has been criticized due to his inability to stay healthy at times, his playoff success, especially if it ends with a ring for New York, outweighs all of that. If he continues to be hot in October, his $325 million contract is well worth the price.
Despite his playoff success, Zachary D. Rymer of Bleacher Report believes his contract could become a nightmare by 2026.
“It wouldn’t be unfair to put Carlos Rodón in the crosshairs here. The lefty was merely an average-ish pitcher even in an ostensible rebound season in 2024. And his six-year, $162 million deal still has four full seasons left. Still, better a guy who could age poorly than a guy who already has aged poorly, which is what Giancarlo Stanton is at this stage.
“Though his playoff heroics go a fair way in redeeming him, Stanton still only has 4.6 rWAR to show for his last six seasons with the Yankees,” Rymer wrote on October 12. “That includes just 0.6 rWAR for the last three, which hints at how little he’s had to offer despite his 82 home runs in this span. This is not going to change, nor are the lower-half injuries that have contributed to Stanton’s demise likely to stop. As such, really the only question is whether he’ll still even be taking up a roster spot for the Yankees in 2026.”
Stanton is Made for the Postseason
The former MVP has played at a high level for much of his career and seems on track to be in the Hall of Fame one day.
But New York Yankees players get remembered for what they do in October, not in the regular season. Stanton has lived up to the moment and recognizes how big of a factor each pitch, at-bat, and game is.
“The weight of the moment,” he said in October, according to Matt Snyder of CBS Sports. “Every pitch can be the deciding factor of your season. Every out, every pitch is cumulative of the six, seven years of preparation for this. You can’t shy away from that. You have to understand that and embrace it and quiet it and get it done.”
Why Stanton’s Contract Isn’t a Concern
Many players around Major League Baseball deal with injuries, but how guys respond to them defines who they are. While Stanton could’ve been content with collecting his massive paycheck, all he’s done is continue to show up daily and be the best teammate and player for the New York Yankees.
There’s value in that, and as long as he plays in the postseason, there isn’t a reason to be too upset with him missing games in a 162-game campaign.
In the best of both worlds, he’ll be healthy in the regular season and playoffs, but the postseason holds much more weight. The Yankees can live with it as long as he’s healthy in October.
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