As a participant’s physique adjustments over time, the identical actions he used to make could not work nicely for him anymore. Adjusting to those adjustments (or not) will make or break his profession. These adjustments have been particularly stark for Giancarlo Stanton. The 35-year-old slugger serves as an fascinating case for observing how nice hitters can alter their swings over time to regulate to their altering bodily attributes.
Stanton had a 116 wRC+ in 459 plate appearances in 2024 – the fifteenth season of his profession. That’s almost similar to the 118 mark he set throughout 396 plate appearances as a rookie in 2010. The distinction between Stanton then and now, although, is night time and day. Let’s check out Stanton at age 20 to get an thought of what his swing was like throughout his first main league season:
Open stance, non-neutral shin angle, slight hand row. None of this stuff are presently current in Stanton’s swing. None. When he got here up, he regarded like an uber-athletic NFL tight finish. He might run nicely, transfer fluidly, and was twitchy sufficient to have a bit of additional motion in his swing (in comparison with current years) and nonetheless have success. Yeah, he struck out over 30% of the time in his rookie marketing campaign, however he was nonetheless studying massive league pitching. He boasted a 141 wRC+ the next season with a really related swing. It wasn’t till his third season the place there was an apparent change. This was when Stanton confirmed what he was actually able to on the plate (and when he began going by Giancarlo):
Now that’s what I’m speaking about. These are actually Stantonian homers right here. In 2012, Stanton raised his wRC+ to 158, delivering 5.1 WAR in simply 123 video games. He cemented himself as one of many scariest sluggers within the sport, and far of that must be attributed to his mechanical changes. He modified his stance to a impartial place and raised his arms up a substantial quantity. From this level on, his arms would keep in a better slot. His hand row from the earlier two seasons at all times introduced him to a better level than the place he began in his setup. As a participant with 80-grade energy, he didn’t actually need that additional motion to create power. Relying in your physique kind (arm size, higher physique flexibility, and so on.), swinging a flat bat from a excessive slot makes it simpler to get your bat on airplane. Since he wasn’t the kind of hitter who varies his shoulder airplane all that a lot, it was a logical change to simplify his method.
Even with these adjustments, we’re nonetheless fairly far off from the place Stanton has been over the previous few seasons. He maintained these mechanics all through 2012 and 2013. Nevertheless, throughout this time, well being turned a problem. He missed time in each of those seasons for knee, belly , ankle, thigh and shoulder accidents. With out biomechanical information, we are able to’t definitively say these accidents pressured his physique to alter and/or he needed to alter his swing to compensate for his compromised well being, however my goodness, these are accidents nearly from head to toe! It wasn’t till the 2014 season that Stanton performed over 140 video games in a single season. And unsurprisingly, he got here into that 12 months with one other modified setup:
That is the primary time in his profession the place we noticed Stanton slender his stance. I’m theorizing right here, however taking away motion might have had two advantages for him: Much like my level earlier than, he’s so robust that he by no means actually wanted to maneuver all that a lot to create energy, and fewer motion would give him a greater shot at making contact. Second, by narrowing his stance and never crouching as a lot, he would put much less stress on his physique. He ended this season with a 161 wRC+, the very best mark of his profession. He additionally remained wholesome till the center of September, when he was hit within the face by a pitch that prematurely ended his season.
The narrowed stance saved working for him in 2015. Throughout his 74 video games to begin the 12 months, he scorched 27 dwelling runs — a full-season tempo of 58. However on June 26 — his 74th sport — he broke his hamate bone swinging sooner or later throughout his last two at-bats, each strikeouts, and missed the remainder of the season.
The one factor about Stanton’s swing that he has by no means actually reconciled is that he doesn’t decelerate a lot. I believe this can be a massive purpose why we see such egregious whiffs from him. As soon as he will get began, there isn’t a slowing down. It additionally comes with some added danger of damage. That is such a violent swing, and his physique bears the brunt of that power as a result of he doesn’t have the brakes in place to come back to a managed cease.
Though he was wholesome to begin the season in 2016, it was clear the damage had compromised him. By the top of the 12 months, he’d fully gotten away from the setup that he’d had a lot success with earlier than the hamate damage. The truth is, he returned to the same stance that we noticed from him early on in his profession:
Ahead lean, barely open hips, and extra knee bend. Sound acquainted? That’s as a result of that is primarily rookie 12 months Stanton, not the nice hitter he was in 2014-2015. His efficiency additionally reverted again to the place it was in 2010; his 118 wRC+ in 2016 was similar to his mark as a rookie. It is smart, then, that he ditched this setup in 2017. Closed stance Stanton has entered the chat:
Stanton didn’t shut his stance off till about June, however he didn’t run it again the primary few months with the stance he used throughout his down 2016 season. He got here into 2017 with the identical stance he had in 2014-2015, when he was raking. However from the summer time on, he closed issues up, ending the season with 59 dwelling runs and profitable NL MVP. It was a particular run that fully took off as a result of one other mechanical change – most likely an important of his profession.
Stanton was traded to the Yankees following the 2017 season and confirmed up with the identical precise setup, and for good purpose. After struggling massive day trip of the gate, he ended up with a 128 wRC+. Not nice however nonetheless excellent. He was wholesome for just about your complete season too, enjoying in 158 video games. Then in 2019, the accidents piled up. After a knee damage that saved him out for nearly your complete 12 months, he returned within the playoffs and sustained a quad damage. Then it was hamstring damage that restricted him to 23 video games in the course of the shortened 2020 season. Over the 2 years, he performed in a complete of 61 common season video games.
Not like different occasions in his profession, Stanton’s accidents in these seasons didn’t result in a mechanical overhaul. At this level in his profession, he knew what one of the best model of himself regarded like. If he might get his physique again to feeling wholesome, it made sense to not undergo any massive adjustments. And in 2021, that labored out nicely. He swatted 35 homers in 139 video games and completed with a 138 wRC+. He suffered a minor quad pressure early within the season, however aside from that, he was wholesome all 12 months.
Although he missed 10 days with a minor calf pressure in late Might/early June, Stanton was additionally principally wholesome for the primary half of 2022, and he hit nicely sufficient to make the All-Star workforce (133 wRC+ in the course of the first half). However then the decrease physique accidents returned, and this time they had been even decrease than earlier than. He made it three days into the second half earlier than touchdown on the IL with Achilles tendonitis. He missed simply over a month, and when he got here again in late August, it took him about two weeks to get going. He additionally had a minor damage scare when he fouled a ball off his foot on September 5; he wasn’t within the lineup for the Yankees’ subsequent 4 video games, although he did pinch hit in two of them. He caught hearth upon returning to the lineup on September 10, posting a 133 wRC+ with seven dwelling runs over his last 79 plate appearances of the common season.
Nonetheless, these specific accidents represented a brand new problem for Stanton. As a closed-stance hitter, he’s way more reliant on his connection to the bottom, making these repeated accidents from the ankle downward particularly regarding. Not solely does he must regain his energy, however he additionally has to determine easy methods to transfer in house and work together with the bottom. This will get tougher for gamers as they age and the accidents compound. The factor about Stanton, although, is he has at all times been keen to tweak his mechanics. Nevertheless, he wanted to hit all-time low earlier than deciding to go away from the setup that he’d had a lot success with for therefore lengthy.
Well being was an issue for Stanton once more in 2023. He strained his hamstring in April and missed nearly two months. Upon his return, he was far off from his diminished 2022 type, when he completed the 12 months with 113 wRC+, which to that time was the worst mark of his profession. His 86 wRC+ to finish the 12 months was bleak. He stayed wholesome after his return, however the terrible efficiency introduced up the query: Was this simply an excessive amount of for him to beat? For Stanton, the reply was to do what he had carried out so nicely for his total profession. He made some extra adjustments, this time to his mechanics and his physique.
There was loads of dialogue round Stanton’s changes in the beginning of 2024, together with this complete look from Jay Jaffe. In brief, the principle level was that he slimmed down (rather a lot!) and shifted nearer to the impartial setup he had from 2014 and 2015 quite than the intense closed stance he had employed starting in June of 2017.
This goes again to the speak about matching your swing to your bodily attributes. Stanton has handled so many decrease physique points over the past 5 years, they usually have impacted what he can do bodily. He couldn’t maintain the identical motion sample within the closed stance along with his present physique, so he went to the same model of the swing that his physique might deal with. His common season nonetheless wasn’t nice, however it was a significant step up from the 12 months earlier than. And when you think about the present he placed on in October, it’s secure to say his adjustments labored fairly nicely general. For a final look, let’s see the place he stands as of October, from a mechanical perspective:
No matter your opinion is of Stanton’s profession, how he tasks for the remainder of it, or something associated to that, there isn’t a denying that what he has carried out all through the final 15 years has been outstanding. There aren’t many hitters who can change as a lot as he has and nonetheless have success. A giant a part of being a fantastic baseball participant is making changes. Stanton has carried out that extremely nicely for a protracted, very long time.
