It was 2016. Giancarlo Stanton did not make the all-star game but partook in the 2016 Home Run Derby. He only played in 119 games and missed 22 games due to a grade 2 hamstring strain. Despite the injuries, he did hit a 504-foot home run, the longest one in the majors that season.
Fast forward to 2017 and Giancarlo Stanton did not disappoint. In the first 8 games, he collected 9 hits and 2 home runs, both coming in a 5-4 loss against the Mets.
Giancarlo started out the month of April with 23 hits and 7 home runs. Some may have thought that he would just have a mediocre season, but little did they know that Stanton would just keep heating up.
By the end of the All-Star break, Stanton posted some great numbers. He batted .277/.360/.572 along with having 26 home runs, leading all NL players. These numbers earned him his fourth all-star selection and an invite to the Home Run Derby. Stanton would lose in the first round of the Derby by one home run to Yankees Catcher and current teammate Gary Sanchez.
Stanton came off the break red hot. In August, he earned himself one for the record books. He started the month by being awarded the Player of the Week Award after hitting 6 home runs as well as having 11 RBI’s while slugging 1.037 and an OPS of 1.416. A day after winning the award, Stanton would hit his 43rd home run and pass Gary Sheffield to become the Marlins all-time home run record holder. He also set a record the same day for hitting a home run in 5 consecutive days. On August 27th, Stanton would hit his 50th home run and become the first player too since Chris Davis. Stanton would also join five other players to reach 50 home runs by the end of August. Two days later, Stanton would tie Rudy York with 18 home runs in a single month. His dominant month of August earned him the Player of the Month Award after having 18 home runs along with 37 RBI’s and a slugging percentage of .899.
September rolled around and Stanton was looking to hit the 60 home run mark. Stanton hit 2 home runs on September 28th to put him at 59 home runs. He was one away from the big 60 mark. Mattingly was determined to get him 60, and in the last game of the season, he decided to bat Stanton lead-off. Stanton would get 2 hits in 5 at-bats after losing the game to the Braves 8-5.
Giancarlo Stanton’s 2017 dominant performance earned him quite a few accolades. Stanton would join the top 10 list of all-time home runs at number 9. He was one away from tying Babe Ruth’s 60 home run season. His first major award was given before Game 2 of the World Series. He was presented with the Hank Aaron Award because of his dominant offensive explosion. This was the second one of his career. He was later presented with the NL MVP Award after beating Cincinnati Red Joey Voto by 2 votes. Stanton would also hold 10 Marlin records, including most career home runs, RBI’s, slugging percentage, total bases, strikeouts, single-season home runs, RBI’s, slugging percentage, extra-base hits, and total bases.
Stanton’s 2017 season stats were out of the roof. He ended with a line of .281/.376/.631 as well as hitting 59 home runs and 132 RBI’s. He had a BB% of 12.3 and a K% of 23.6%, the lowest in his career. His advanced stats were also some of his best. He had a wRC of 131 (career-best) and a wRC+ of 158 (tied for 2nd-career-best). He had a career-best wOBA of .410 and a career-best wRAA of 52.3.
Stanton did not only have an offensive explosion but also did have a great year in the field. He had a career-best DRS of 11. His UZR and URZ/150 were also some of his career-best. He had a URZ of 8.3 and a UZR/150 of 8.2.
After Stanton’s MVP season, he would exercise his no-trade clause two times as he rejected deals both to the Cardinals and Giants. On December 11th, however, he would be traded to the New York Yankees in exchange for Starlin Castro and two young prospects. Stanton would become the 2nd player ever to be traded after having a 50-homer season.
