After reaching the World Series last season, only to fall short against the Los Angeles Dodgers, the New York Yankees are set to begin their 2025 season on Thursday, facing the Milwaukee Brewers at Yankee Stadium. However, they will be without their powerful, though frequently injured, slugger Giancarlo Stanton. Over the past six seasons, Stanton has missed 353 games out of a possible 858 due to various injuries. This spring, he reported pain in both elbows, which has kept him from participating in baseball activities as the season approaches.
In a prediction published on Wednesday, New York sportswriters Nick Mongiovi and Cooper Albers of amNY suggested that Stanton might miss the entire 2025 season. This stands in contrast to an earlier prediction by Yankees broadcaster Michael Kay, who anticipated Stanton would return by Memorial Day, May 26. However, the more cautious outlook now seems to be the more realistic one. Stanton has undergone three rounds of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections for his elbow, which have provided some relief but not a complete recovery. He has yet to resume baseball activities and remains out indefinitely, according to a report from Greg Joyce of the New York Post.
amNY writers noted, “The way (manager Aaron) Boone and the Yankees have handled Stanton’s injury has been alarming and suspicious.” Given Stanton’s recurring injuries and extended absences, they predict he will miss the entire 2025 season. Stanton is now in the 11th year of his 13-year, $325 million contract, which he signed with the Miami Marlins before being traded to the Yankees in December 2017. On Wednesday, the Yankees placed Stanton on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to Monday. However, Robert Casey of Bleeding Yankee Blue added that it wouldn’t be surprising if Stanton ends up on the 60-day IL. “The Yankees’ handling of injuries has often left fans feeling like they’re being strung along,” Casey wrote, and this situation is no different.
Stanton has been relying on PRP injections to treat his unresolved elbow injuries, but if surgery becomes necessary, his season could be over.
