Giancarlo Stanton is getting closer to return to Yankee lineup, but still not imminent

BOSTON — Giancarlo Stanton was on the field before Monday night’s game. The slugger tracked pitches as Domingo German and Frankie Montas threw bullpens, he said he needs a few more days of these kinds of workouts and to “bounce back” before he can start planning his rehab assignment.

He hopes standing in to track pitches will help limit his rehab time on the back end, but he’s still not sure when he will be back in the Yankees lineup.

“I’m not sure, but the least amount possible,” Stanton said on the field before the Yankees took on the Rays without him. “But I am going to track every day off whoever is on the mound and that will definitely help to get my timing down.”

Stanton was hitting .228/.309/.498 with an .807 OPS and 24 home runs when he went on the injured list with tendinitis in his left Achilles July 24.

In the 18 games Stanton has missed so far, the Bombers have gone 7-11 and their lineup has struggled. They were also without Anthony Rizzo for five games, Matt Carpenter went down with a broken foot a week ago and now DJ LeMahieu has missed two games with a toe issue.

“Very annoying. It’s annoying not playing in general,” Stanton said of having to watch the Yankees struggle without him.  “But you have to be smart also. So you know that that trumps everything.”

Aaron Boone said rough stretches have to be expected.

“I mean, it’s gonna happen over a long haul,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said after the Yankees were shut out by the Red Sox to end the nine-game trip. “We’ve got some guys banged up, obviously some guys in and out. I think I try and take a bigger snapshot look and the offense has been going pretty solid. You’re gonna have these games where you struggle a little bit. Obviously a couple guys out of lineup, beat up a little bit and you get a hot pitcher. That can make it tough on a given night.”

But it happened three times in the span of 10 days to the Yankees after having been shut out just six times in their first 80 games. There is no doubt that not having Anthony Rizzo for five games because of lower back tightness contributed as well as losing Matt Carpenter to a broken foot four games into the trip and having to sit DJ LeMahieu with a sore right big toe on Sunday night were factors.

But the Yankees are built on power. They have pitchers who can dominate hitters with power and they are built to overwhelm teams with a powerful offense. Those parts have not been working together for a while now.

“We had a couple of injuries  and played a couple good teams. I thought  St. Louis looked really good, Seattle played us really tough. And every time we come (to Boston), we know it’s going to be tough,” said Jameson Taillon, who was one of the few Yankees who had a good trip. “Just a mix of you know, sometimes we pitched and hitting’s a little behind, and sometimes we hit and then as pitchers don’t pull our weight, you know, earlier in the year when things were really going our way, it seemed like everyone was just doing their thing at the same exact time. So that combined with just playing good quality baseball teams, so yeah, I’ll be excited to get home and see what we can do.”

It doesn’t get easier for the Yankees.

They have four against the Rays, who are fighting for their postseason lives and then the Blue Jays, who are doing the same. Then the Bombers head out to the West Coast again, hoping the road is a little easier through Oakland and the Angels with neither team really playing for much right now, before another cross-country trip to face the Rays once again.

There may be some help on the horizon with Stanton expected back, possibly as soon as this weekend, and LeMahieu expecting to be back in the lineup Monday. With the trade deadline passed, there is no outside help coming, but the Yankees think they have all they need within their own clubhouse.

LeMahieu was blunt about it when asked about the Yankees’ recent slide.

“Not our best road trip. We’re all frustrated. I think all of us can pick it up a little bit,” LeMahieu said. “I think if each of us pick it up, collectively, I think we’re gonna be a much better team. We know how good a team we are. We just haven’t been playing like it.”