Stanton has been dealing with issues in both of his elbows for the past few months of the off-season.
"I'm not going to put any timeline on it," said Boone regarding Stanton's status for Opening Day. "We’re just going to be smart with it.”
Stanton reported for his mandatory physical exam this past weekend but he'll be held out from any sort of play for the time being.
“It’s just something we don’t want to rush," said Boone. "If we can get to a really good spot and know we’re going to have to probably deal with some maintenance with it throughout the year. We don’t want to force anything too early.”
Stanton is a formidable bat in the middle of the Yankees' lineup. Unfortunately, his career has been on the downturn for the past two years.
In 2023, Stanton slashed .191/.275/.420 with 24 home runs and 60 RBI in 101 games. A year later his numbers increased, but still nothing great, hitting .233/.298/.475 with 27 home runs and 72 RBI in 114 games.
However, Stanton flourished in the recent postseason run for the Yankees and went on to win the American League Championship Series MVP.
Across their 14 games games against the Kansas City Royals, Cleveland Guardians, and Los Angeles Dodgers, Stanton impressed with a .273/.339/.709 slash line while putting up seven home runs and 16 RBI.
Luckily, the Yankees have other options for their DH - mainly their star slugger Aaron Judge.
The Yankees kick off their spring training with a matchup against the Tampa Bay Rays on February 21st while their Opening Day is scheduled for March 27th against the Milwaukee Brewers.