Even with two tennis elbows bothering him for much of last season, Giancarlo Stanton still led all players in average bat speed at 81.2 mph. His 94.6-mph average exit velocity and 12.4 barrels per plate appearance ranked fourth, and his 120-mph maximum exit velo ranked second.
If there were any fears that Stanton’s hard-hitting habits would dissipate after his elbows cost him all of spring training and the first few months of the 2025 season, he eased those concerns in his first game of the year, an 11-inning, 1-0 Yankees loss to the Angels on Monday. The evening saw the designated hitter, batting fifth, go 2-for-4 with a double.
That double rocketed down the left field line at 102.9 mph to lead off the ninth inning of a scoreless game. But Jasson Domínguez pinch-ran for Stanton before a perfectly placed Anthony Volpe grounder, combined with a stolen base attempt, allowed the Angels to record an out at third.
The deflating play saw Domínguez slide head-first through the legs of Luis Rengifo. As The Martian went in, the third baseman applied the tag as he got clipped on his ankle, causing Rengifo to hop around in pain.
A few innings later, Nolan Schanuel drove in the first run of the game with a double off Jonathan Loáisiga in the 11th. The Yankees were unable to even things up in the bottom of the frame, their 20th consecutive scoreless inning, resulting in a series-opening loss.
The final half-inning saw Aaron Judge take his second intentional walk of the night before Cody Bellinger roped a long sac fly to right to give the Yankees runners on the corners. However, Domínguez hit a broken-bat tapper, resulting in an out at the plate. Jazz Chisholm Jr. then reached on a misplayed infield single to load the bases, but Volpe grounded into a force out to end the game.
Long before extras, Stanton heard an enthusiastic ovation at Yankee Stadium before grounding out in the first inning, the result of his first plate appearance since the 2024 World Series. The out came with two runners in scoring position, but also at 101.5 mph.
Stanton then recorded his first hit of the season, a single to left, in the fourth inning. That ball was smoked at 111.1 mph off a 97.4-mph sinker from José Soriano.
The Angels right-hander, who threw seven scoreless innings, got Stanton to chase a knuckle-curve for a strikeout in the sixth.
Unfortunately for the Yankees, Stanton’s return did not reinvigorate an offense that scored just four times over three games while getting swept by the Red Sox over the weekend. That series included a shutout on Sunday.
The Angels opener marked the fifth straight game that the Yankees didn’t give their starting pitcher any run support.
Monday’s lucky pitcher, Clarke Schmidt, pitched into the eighth frame for the first time this season as he held the sub-.500 Halos scoreless. The righty only struck out three Angels over 7.2 innings and 97 pitches, but he permitted just four hits and didn’t walk a batter for the first time this season.
Schmidt has now logged six-plus innings in six of his last eight starts, and he’s thrown at least six scoreless in three of his last four outings. His ERA dropped to 3.16.
The Angels did threaten Schmidt’s scoreless night at the end, as Brooklyn product Christian Moore recorded a triple for his first-career hit when Judge made an ill-advised lunge in the eighth. However, Ferndano Cruz entered and kept Los Angeles off the board by striking out Zach Neto.
With Stanton back and the series-opener out of the way, the Yankees will send Will Warren to the mound on Tuesday. The rookie will be opposed by the veteran Kyle Hendricks as the Yanks look to get their bats going.
