Stanton in RF, Judge in LF? Yankees say it's 'on the table'

TAMPA, Fla. -- The Yankees believe that more innings in the outfield would help Giancarlo Stanton play to his potential this season. Aaron Judge has a suggestion on how to make it happen.

“I did mention it to them about, ‘If we need to get Big G in right field at Yankee Stadium, put me in left,’” Judge said. “I don’t mind it. I don’t mind switching around so we can have me, [center fielder Harrison Bader] and Big G out there. We’ll get some reps, hopefully, in Spring Training and get comfortable out there.”

Yankees manager Aaron Boone said there is no set plan to begin playing Judge in left field, though Boone acknowledged that the concept is “on the table.” Like Boone, Stanton believes he would benefit from semi-regular duty in the outfield.

“I think I have more of a flow when I’m an outfielder,” Stanton said. “Being an outfielder, you’re more engaged in the game, whereas [as the] DH, you’re inside a lot of the time staying warm and hitting, kind of watching the game from the TV.”

Stanton played right field during his best season in 2017 with the Marlins, when he paced the Majors with 59 homers and 132 RBIs while winning the National League’s Most Valuable Player Award. He has primarily served as a designated hitter since then, including 65 starts at DH last season, against 38 in the outfield (34 in right field and four in left).

“It’ll continue to be similar as last year,” Stanton said. “I hit a road bump with the [left Achilles] injury there [in July], but you’ve got to build up to a similar game plan and see what we can accomplish, putting us in the best scenario to win each night -- wherever that is in the lineup.”

Said Judge: “I know he wants to be a good outfielder. He’s good out there.”

Boone has said that he would prefer not to play Stanton in the more spacious left field at Yankee Stadium, though having Stanton patrol smaller left fields like Boston’s Fenway Park and Houston’s Minute Maid Park would be a consideration. Out of necessity, Stanton made two starts in left during last year’s American League Championship Series.

“I’m open to things like that, especially in the home ballpark,” Boone said. “So we’ll see. It’s something that I would say I’m at least considering, and we’ll just see how that goes in letting that play out and getting guys reps in different spots. So no decision on that yet, but it is something that’s on my board.”

The Yankees appeared to enter the spring with a left-field competition between switch-hitters Aaron Hicks and Oswaldo Cabrera, with general manager Brian Cashman saying that he suspected Hicks would eventually win the starting role.

But Judge’s suggestion may shake up the mix; more starts in the outfield could spell time in the DH role for Josh Donaldson, for example, which could help alleviate a crowded infield mix. Last year’s All-Star Game MVP, Stanton slumped in the second half, finishing the season with a .211/.294/.462 slash line while hitting 31 homers with 78 RBIs in 110 games.

“I don’t know if 59 [homers] is in there, but I know an All-Star, middle-of-the-order wrecking ball is in there if he’s healthy,” Boone said. “The biggest thing is, as much as we can keep him posting all of the time, he’s capable of putting up massive numbers. That’s still absolutely in there. It’s just a matter of getting him to post 140 times or whatever it may be.”

Stanton has played in 290 of 546 possible regular-season games since the beginning of the 2019 season.

“I am of the belief that him playing the outfield, I think it’s good for his game, but I also think it’s good for his health,” Boone said. “I think it’s good that, when he’s healthy, he’s not just a DH. I feel like if you’re going to squat or bench press or run a marathon, you don’t just sit over there and not do it. You’ve got to work on those things.”

Judge made 78 appearances in center field and 73 in right field last season, but he has never appeared in left field as a big leaguer. He suited up there for seven games with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in 2016, and his last regular innings at the position came during his freshman season at Fresno State University.

“The only way you can really test things out is throwing yourself out there,” Judge said. “Hopefully I’ll get a couple of games out there.”