New York Yankees slugger Giancarlo Stanton made his Yankee Stadium debut in pinstripes last night and things didn't go quite as well as they did in the season opener. In fact, Stanton's Yankee Stadium debut went about as bad as anyone could have imagined.
Stanton struck out five times, four times swinging, and was booed by the home crowd in the bottom of the 8th inning as he walked back to the dugout following the first five-strikeout performance of his career.
"You put up a performance like that, you should get some boos," Stanton said at his locker following the game, according to ESPN.
"Everyone's been booed. It's no big deal," Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge said. "He knows that. It's just, you got to go out there and just do your job the next day. If you don't have it one day, you can't complain, can't mope -- which he's not. He knows how it is.
Despite Stanton's lackluster performance in the Yankees home-opener, the Bronx Bombers managed to cruise to an 11-4 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays, thanks to shortstop DiDi Gregorius, who went 4-for-4, including two three-run homeruns and a career-high eight RBIs.
"Good thing it's not all about me," Stanton said, via ESPN. "I was awful [Tuesday], but Didi picked me up and the rest of the guys. That's what you need on a not-so-good night for an individual."
"He picked me up," Stanton said of Gregorius. "That's what a cleanup hitter does -- clean up the garbage in front of you."
Stanton will have an opportunity to get back on track today, as the Yanks host the Rays at 1:05pm ET.
