Giancarlo Stanton led Major League Baseball with 59 home runs in 2017, which was the same year the Astros cheated their way to a World Series title with their elaborate sign-stealing scheme. Had Stanton played for Houston that year, he believes he would currently be MLB’s home run king.
Stanton discussed the Astros’ cheating scandal with the media on Thursday, and he echoed the sentiments of many other players across the league. The slugger said he felt the punishment was not nearly harsh enough. He also said he would have hit 80 home runs in 2017 if he knew which pitches were coming.
Giancarlo Stanton: "If I knew what was coming in 2017, I would have hit 80 home runs."
— Lindsey Adler (@lindseyadler) February 19, 2020
Stanton added that the lack of remorse shown by Astros players is what bothers him most about the whole situation.
Giancarlo Stanton on #Astros: "I would like a better apology, or explanation on their side…We know they really don't care
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) February 19, 2020
Giancarlo Stanton on why he believes #Astros title should be vacated: If you cheat in another way during the season (PED violation), you can't even be in the playoffs, so therefore they would be eliminated. Pretty much the same difference.''
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) February 19, 2020
NY #Yankees slugger Giancarlo Stanton to #Astros: "You’re only really sorry, because you got caught. ''
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) February 19, 2020
It’s impossible to know how many homers Stanton would have hit in 2017 if someone was banging on a trash can every time a curveball was coming, but we can almost guarantee it would have been more than 59.
Stanton’s teammate Aaron Judge unloaded on the Astros for their cheating ways earlier in the week, and the criticism has shown no signs of slowing down.
