Stanton (elbows) set to rejoin Yanks camp, surgery viewed as 'last resort'

TAMPA, Fla. -- Giancarlo Stanton received a second round of platelet-rich plasma injections in his ailing elbows on Thursday and is expected to re-join Yankees camp this weekend, according to general manager Brian Cashman, though it is unknown when the designated hitter will be ready to resume baseball activities.

Stanton has been away from the team since Feb. 24, when he traveled to New York; the Yankees later said Stanton was attending to a matter “private in nature” and unrelated to his elbows. Stanton has been unable to swing a bat since mid-January due to the elbow issue, which Stanton has said bothered him for most of the 2024 season.

“The complaints didn’t come up until right before camp,” Cashman said. “Ultimately, he was dealing with it at the end of last year and obviously thought we were in a good place. I think he was feeling like we were in a good place, but then it reared its ugly head about three weeks before camp, is my understanding.

“So now we’re dealing with it. We’ll give it the time it needs. We clearly look forward to getting him back at some point, but obviously in the near term, that won’t be the case.”

Stanton, 35, posted a .233/.298/.475 slash line in 114 games last season, tallying 27 home runs, 20 doubles and 72 RBIs. He was a force in the postseason, belting seven homers with 16 RBIs, earning MVP honors in the American League Championship Series against the Guardians.

The slugger has said he expects to play through some level of discomfort this season when he returns. Cashman characterized corrective surgery, which could have a three-month recovery period, as “a last resort.”

“I can’t rule out surgery, but I know it’s not recommended in the front end of this thing,” Cashman said. “If you have a number of different failed attempts, then obviously you start looking at different ways of intervention.”

With Stanton unavailable, captain Aaron Judge is likely to see increased time in the DH role; the Yanks’ Grapefruit League lineup on Thursday against the Twins could be a preview of the Opening Day order. Other DH choices in camp include Ben Rice, Everson Pereira, J.C. Escarra and Dom Smith.

“We’ll see; we’ve got a few weeks until we get there,” manager Aaron Boone said. “But I like the in-house candidates, especially against right-handed pitching, that we’ll be able to weather that storm.”

Giddy up
Gerrit Cole said he doesn’t sweat results in Spring Training, and the right-hander seemed unaffected by a rocky outing Thursday in which he allowed six runs to the Twins over 2 2/3 innings, including homers to Matt Wallner and Brooks Lee.

“I got my work in,” Cole said. “Not great command; I kept trying to work the fastball over and over again. I had really bad command on the arm side and couldn’t really get it on the corner well enough. I really liked the velocity, and the ball was moving a lot. I had a little extra horsepower today and a little extra movement today.”

Boone noted Cole was hurt by “a couple of wonky plays out there behind him.” Cole set Minnesota down on nine pitches in the first inning but labored in the second, a frame extended when shortstop Anthony Volpe threw wildly to first base attempting to turn a double play.

Cole was lifted with two outs in the second inning but re-entered in the third, finishing his afternoon with 54 pitches (34 for strikes).

“The stuff’s all there,” Boone said. “They squared some balls and he was in the center of the plate, behind in the count a little bit. But overall, it’s another really good step in the process of it.”

Possible preview?
Thursday marked exactly three weeks until Opening Day, and Boone offered a potential glimpse of a lineup he might use against the Brewers on March 27, including catcher Austin Wells in the leadoff spot. Boone said he’s also toying with infielder Jazz Chisholm Jr. at the top, which would seem to be a more traditional choice.

“I’m still really open to things,” Boone said. “I just think Wells is going to be a really good offensive player. I think he’s going to get on base, so that’s part of that.”

The Yankees have played more than 18,000 regular season games in their history, and they have never had a catcher start a game batting first. It happened five times in the Majors last season (three by the Brewers’ William Contreras).

Diagnosis confirmed
Luis Gil traveled to New York for additional testing this week, which Cashman said confirmed the initial diagnosis of a high-grade right lat strain.

The reigning AL Rookie of the Year is scheduled to receive a PRP injection on Thursday and will not throw for at least six weeks. Cashman said the Yankees are planning on an absence of at least three months.

“He’s certainly important to us, but thankfully, as long as we handle it right, we’ll get him back sometime in the summer,” Cashman said.

Gil’s injury opened a spot in the rotation for veteran Marcus Stroman, joining a staff headlined by Gerrit Cole, Max Fried, Carlos Rodón and Clarke Schmidt. Other depth starting pitching options in camp include Will Warren, Carlos Carrasco and Allan Winans.

“You can never have enough, and hopefully we have what we need,” Cashman said.

DJ shelved
DJ LeMahieu underwent an MRI on Tuesday that revealed a strain of the infielder’s left calf, according to Cashman. The injury takes LeMahieu out of the competition to serve as the Yankees’ Opening Day third baseman, as LeMahieu told reporters he will not resume baseball activities for “a couple weeks.”

Oswaldo Cabrera and Oswald Peraza are the leading candidates at third base; if one does not convincingly grab the job, Cashman said Boone could “multiplayer it” with his choices.