Yankees Welcome 'Prodigious' Presence Back to Starting Lineup

For the first time since May 11, the Yankees have Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and Gleyber Torres in the starting lineup. 

Stanton is set to make his return from the 10-day injured list on Friday evening in Detroit, reinstated after missing just over two weeks with a left quad strain. 

The slugger is back in the spot that he's been so dangerous in this season: hitting second in the order at designated hitter. 

"He's been doing well and definitely good to have him back," Yankees manager Aaron Boone said a few hours before first pitch. "What he means to our lineup and how well he's been swinging the bat to start the year. Not only that, but just add a little bit more length to our lineup as well."

Before Stanton went down, last playing on May 13, the slugger was fresh off a stretch where he was flat out unconscious at the plate. Across a 12-game hitting streak, starting in late-April, Stanton was hitting .481 (25-for-52) with six home runs, 11 RBI and a 1.413 OPS.

On the season overall, the slugger is batting .282 (37-for-131) with nine homers, 16 runs scored and 24 RBI in 33 games.

"His power is prodigious," Boone said. "I think what's been really impressive about him this year, to me, is just the quality of at-bats we've been getting. Really going back to I felt like in spring training he was having really good at-bats, really good process and carried it right into the regular season, even on days he's not getting hits. 

"I feel like routinely, we're looking at two or three balls that are smoked each and every day, he's been kind of having those kind of at-bats, going back to last postseason and has really carried it into this year. I just think he's in a really good frame of mind, putting together really good plans when he walks into the game each and every night. For the most part, he's been delivering on that."

Behind Stanton in the starting lineup is fellow slugger Aaron Judge, who leads the team with 13 long balls.

New York enters this weekend series in Detroit after going 4-2 in a six-game homestand in the Bronx. 

Offensively, the Yankees have scored more than two runs only four times over their last 10 games. The addition of Stanton back into the lineup should provide even more of a spark for the Bombers against the lowly Tigers. 

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