TAMPA — Giancarlo Stanton’s October heroics became even more impressive Sunday when Aaron Boone disclosed that he was playing through an injury at the time.

The only problem is that a few months later, the Yankees slugger is still dealing with the issue and it will have him starting spring training — and potentially the season — from behind.

Stanton has the equivalent of tennis elbow (or tendinitis) in both elbows, Boone said on the day position players reported to camp to take their physicals, which could jeopardize his ability to start the season on time.

“We want to make sure we’re giving that as much time [as it needs], so we’ll probably slow-play him a little bit,” Boone said Sunday at Steinbrenner Field. “I’m expecting him to be OK, it’s just a matter of when we want to start really rolling it out to give us the best chance to get as much of him as we can.”
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Giancarlo Stanton is dealing with an elbow injury.Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
Asked whether the injury could affect Stanton’s availability for the start of the season, Boone said it was “tough to say.”

“I’m not going to put any timeline on it,” Boone said. “We’re going to be smart with it and listen to it.”

Boone said Stanton dealt with the elbow issues late last season and even in October, when the veteran DH put together a monster postseason by batting .273 with seven home runs and a 1.048 OPS in 14 games.

The 35-year-old was then ramping up his activity in the offseason before shutting it down and getting treatment on his elbows.

“It’s just something we don’t want to rush,” Boone said. “If we can get to a really good spot — and know we’re probably going to have to deal with some maintenance on it throughout the year. But don’t want to force anything too early.

“This is something that if we were full bore in, we’d be grinding away probably. Just want to make sure we give it the proper time and give ourselves the best position throughout the year.”

Trent Grisham is also starting camp “a little behind” after pulling a hamstring a few weeks ago while training, Boone said.

The outfielder was running close to full speed on Sunday, but the Yankees will not push him at this point.

But Stanton’s potential absence looms largest, as the Yankees are banking on him being a threat in the middle of a lineup that is already going to have to make up for the loss of Juan Soto.

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Giancarlo Stanton’s Opening Day availability is in doubt.JASON SZENES/NEW YORK POST
Stanton may be past his days as an MVP, but last year — around a hamstring strain that sidelined him for five weeks — he at least provided what Boone often described as a “presence” in the order while hitting 27 home runs with a .773 OPS across 114 games.

The Yankees brought in Cody Bellinger and Paul Goldschmidt to help make up for Soto’s absence, though a productive Stanton is just as important to that equation.

If Aaron Judge bats second, as Boone said he was leaning toward, Stanton is likely to hit cleanup — when healthy, of course.

“He’s huge for us,” Boone said. “Especially us that are a little more left-handed right now, you take a big right-handed bat out of there, we get a little unbalanced. He’s big. And he was big for us in the regular season [last year]. What Aaron and Juan were doing was historic, but his presence in the middle was big.”

The Yankees are no strangers to Stanton missing time to the injured list, though typically it has been because of lower-body, soft-tissue injuries.

He reported to camp leaner last year in an attempt to avoid some of those injuries, but a year later, it is his elbows that are a cause for concern.

Aaron Boone looks on at Yankees spring training on Feb. 13, 2025.Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
There were no procedures or injections planned for Stanton, just time, as the clock begins to tick on Opening Day on March 27.

“I think it’s just something that’s there,” Boone said, “and probably something that’s chronic or guys that get that have to deal with on some level.”