Stanton's homecoming 'everything you dream for' in a Fall Classic

LOS ANGELES -- Giancarlo Stanton has always loved power hitters. Long before the local product was blasting balls out of big league ballparks, he recalls scrounging for tickets in the Dodger Stadium parking lot, angling for views of stars like Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire and Mike Piazza during batting practice.

“My favorite moments here were probably the little things, coming early to batting practice and hearing the sound of the bat in a relatively empty stadium,” Stanton said. “I was in the outfield trying to catch home run balls. I guess I learned my big league depth perception here, I would say.”

More often than not, Stanton would find a spot in the left-field bleachers; he once boasted to his father, Mike, that he would someday hit a ball over those seats. He made good on that in 2015 as a member of the Marlins; now, as a Yankee, Stanton aims to follow through on his stated goal of delivering a World Series championship.

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Don’t bet against it. Stanton has enjoyed a monster postseason thus far, earning MVP honors behind four homers in the American League Championship Series against the Guardians. Through nine playoff games, Stanton has gone 10-for-34 (.294) with two doubles, five homers, 11 RBIs -- and even a stolen base, when he caught the Royals napping to register his first swipe in four years.

“It’s amazing how much he has slowed the game down,” said James Rowson, the Yankees’ hitting coach. “This time of year, it speeds up on people. With G, it’s gone the other way. … I just think he’s made for the moment.

“He’s waited for this, he’s excited about it, he’s ready for it. You watch his demeanor, how he goes about it. He’s not lying. His mentality is, he doesn’t feel like we’ve done anything yet. He's right; he’s like, ‘We came to win it all.’”

Now Stanton is back home, where his numbers have always been strong. In 25 career games at Chavez Ravine, Stanton has collected 29 hits in 94 at-bats (.309), with nine doubles, 10 homers and 26 RBIs. Stanton credited the performance to “that Cali air, man. I grew up with it.”

On the eve of his first World Series game, Stanton said that he was trying to keep his eyes on the prize -- once the Dodgers advanced past the Mets, confirming this Fall Classic showdown, Stanton said his first move was to “shut my phone off.”

Surely, untold numbers of acquaintances have come out of the woodwork seeking tickets, but Stanton has always prided himself upon keeping a tight circle. He acknowledged that there are “creep-in moments” when his teenage side cracks through.

“It’s hard not to reminisce around the ballpark,” Stanton said. “But it’s all business. You check in and out, enjoy it, and understand we’ve got work to do.”

Born in Panorama City, Calif., Stanton was raised in the Tujunga area of Los Angeles, about 15 miles north of Dodger Stadium (though, as Stanton notes, that can take anywhere from 30 minutes to two hours, depending on traffic). He counted Raul Mondesi and Hideo Nomo among his favorite Dodgers of that period, adoring their exploits almost as much as double-fisted cheat meals at his beloved In-N-Out Burger.

“There was always something to do,” Stanton said. “The weather made it easy to be outside playing sports. The beach isn’t too far. There was high competition in all sports.”

Stanton went on to star in baseball, basketball and football at Notre Dame High School in Sherman Oaks, Calif. Tom Dill, the school’s head baseball coach, told the New York Daily News that Stanton could have signed as a professional in any of those sports, but that he “picked the right one.”

“I know he’s really pumped up about coming back home and being able to play here,” Dill said. “He always does well at Dodger Stadium, and we’re excited for that. I don’t see how he could do any better than he’s been doing the last few weeks.”

In fact, Stanton could have been on the other side of this World Series. He’d worked out at Chavez Ravine on the recommendation of legendary scout George Genovese, but the Dodgers passed on the hulking specimen from their backyard (whoops!). The Marlins selected him instead, using a second-round pick in the 2007 MLB Draft.

When Stanton was named the MVP of the 2022 All-Star Game in Los Angeles, he described it as a “full circle” moment, having played left field in front of the seating area from which he once begged players to toss souvenirs. His first career World Series game may top that experience.

“It doesn’t get bigger than this in our sport,” Stanton said. “It’s everything you dream for in a matchup.”