As the Yankees traverse through the meatball portion of their schedule, they also apparently have the 2017 version of Giancarlo Stanton for them.
And with an MVP-type Stanton on the side against the Nationals, it’s no contest.
Stanton, playing right field again with Aaron Judge still at DH while he’s nursing a right elbow flexor strain, delivered a three-run double in the bottom of the third then a two-run homer in the sixth to spark a 5-1 win.
Stanton has five homers in his past seven games and seven in his past 11, as hot as any power hitter in the game for most of the past two months.
And his ability to play right field — at least well enough for the Yankees to survive — has allowed Stanton to remain in the lineup while Judge has slumped since his return from the IL.
It’s a complete turnaround from the first half of the season, when Judge was the most-feared hitter on the planet and there were questions about how much the Yankees would get from Stanton, who dealt with tendinitis in both elbows.
Lately, Stanton has helped the Yankees follow up three straight losses with three consecutive victories.
The past two have come against the mostly talentless Nationals, who have lost four in a row, but still managed to win a series against the Mets last week.
Luis Gil, trying to regain the form he showed last year, when he was the American League Rookie of the Year, allowed just one run in five innings, though he has had command issues.
He walked four and gave up five hits and pitched around some hard-hit balls by Washington.
Washington went ahead in the third, with a rally started by a leadoff double from Robert Hassell III.
After a one-out walk to James Wood, CJ Abrams singled to left.
Washington third base coach Ricky Gutierrez tried to hold Hassell at third, but Hassell ran through the sign and Cody Bellinger — seemingly believing Hassell wasn’t going to try to score on the play — didn’t have much urgency on his throw and Hassell scored the game’s first run.
Gil stranded two runners in the inning and the Yankees offense quickly rebounded against left-hander MacKenzie Gore, with some help from the Nationals.
Paul Goldschmidt got the Yankees going with a two-out double, and Judge and Bellinger followed with walks to load the bases for Stanton.
Stanton then crushed a 3-2 curveball off the wall in left-center to clear the bases and give the Yankees a 3-1 lead.
And for the second straight night, Washington pitching coach Jim Hickey waited until after a starter got in trouble then gave up a run-scoring hit to a star — Judge on Monday and Stanton Tuesday — to take a trip to the mound.
Gore got Trent Grisham on a comebacker to end the 40-pitch inning.
In the top of the fifth, Bellinger made up for his earlier miscue in left.
After Gil gave up his second leadoff double of the game — this one to Wood — he got Abrams to pop out and whiffed Luis García Jr. before Bell singled to left.
Bellinger charged and, this time, threw to home in time to get Wood easily for the third out to preserve the two-run lead.
Fernando Cruz replaced Gil to start the sixth in his return from an oblique strain and loaded the bases with one out. The right-hander then got Jacob Young swinging before left-hander Tim Hill came in to get Wood on a groundout to third.
Stanton then took right-hander Orlando Ribalta deep in the sixth, a 451-foot shot that made it 5-1.
Prior to the game, Boone praised the resurgent Stanton, who’s been arguably the game’s second-best hitter behind Nick Kurtz of the A’s since July 8. This, after Stanton missed the first two-plus months of the season with tendinitis in both elbows.
So, as the Yankees enter the stretch run looking to secure a spot in the postseason, it’s Stanton leading the offense — not Judge.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
