New York Yankees plan on paying Giancarlo Stanton $218M to be a DH

There are good reasons for the move, but Giancarlo Stanton will be a very expensive DH for the New York Yankees.

After a postseason exit that was earlier than they wanted, New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman addressed the media on Wednesday. A particularly interesting not came out of the session, as Brendan Kuty of NJ.com reported Cashman said Giancarlo Stanton will exclusively be a DH going forward.

Stanton was strictly a DH in this shortened season, but he still only played 23 regular season games as a hamstring issue sidelined him. In 94 plate appearances he had a .250/.387/.500 slash-line with four home runs and 11 RBI. He seemed to find a power groove late though, hitting a home run in five straight games from the end of the regular season to the start of the postseason.

Giancarlo Stanton will be an expensive DH

Stanton can opt out of his contract this offseason, but that seems unlikely. He has seven years and $218 million left on his contract, with a $25 million option and a $10 million buyout for 2028 with the Miami Marlins covering $10 million of (the buyout, essentially). If he does not opt out, the Marlins would pay the Yankees $30 million. Still New York is on the hook for $188 million through 2028 unless Stanton opts out, or they find a way to trade him as his contract gets marginally more palatable.

Stanton has never been a great defensive outfielder, though he has generally not delivered  negative value based on advanced metrics. But 2019 was a low point, over just 95 defensive innings in left and right field (-1 Defensive Runs Saved, -1 UZR, -14.8 UZR/150).

Stanton is an elite power hitter when he’s healthy, and it’s worth remembering he only played 18 games in 2019. So keeping him in the lineup has to be a priority, whatever it takes. Stanton will just be a very expensive DH for the next several years, as the Yankees cross their fingers he doesn’t ever pull up lame running the bases.