"He's not Giancarlo Stanton" - Ex-Marlins president warns Yankees' $12,500,000 addition can't fill injured superstar's shoes

New York Yankees slugger Giancarlo Stanton is struggling with injury and one analyst believes their $12.5 million addition in Paul Goldschmidt is not a replacement. With Stanton set to miss the first few weeks of the season, it looks likely that Goldschmidt will take on the DH role in the Yankees lineup. However, former Miami Marlins president David Samson believes Goldschmidt does not have what it takes to fill Stanton's shoes. On his "Nothing Personal with David Samson" podcast on Tuesday, he said:

(from 13:19)

"If you're the Yankees and you've got your designated hitter, such an important part of your lineup where you've lost Soto, you know going into this season no matter what you've done to your team, adding Goldschmidt, great add, but he's not Stanton. He's not that presence in the lineup that you would think a former MVP would be. Stanton is a former MVP and still that presence."

"If you're the New York Yankees going into this season, where you know you don't have Soto or Stanton in your lineup, you've got a problem. You're going to have a winning problem in the AL East, where each of the teams is going to be better than you are."

Giancarlo Stanton has not been able to join Spring Training with the New York Yankees due to pain in both his elbows. He has travelled to New York to get tested but lastest reports suggest that he will most likely miss the first few weeks of the new MLB season.

Yankees captain Aaron Judge gives an update on Giancarlo Stanton's injury

The 2025 MLB season is just days away and the New York Yankees are still not sure how long Giancarlo Stanton will be out injured. Since the slugger flew to New York this week, there has been some confusion on whether it was due to his injury or personal reasons. Aaron Judge has since provided an udpdate on the situation, saying (via Bryan Hoch):

"We'll see what the doctors say about what's going on. I've been checking with him every day, talking to him. We went out to dinner. He's got a positive mindset with everything. ... I want a healthy G in the middle of the season."

From Judge's words, it looks like Stanton is not likely to return to action in the first half of the season. However, until they know the full extent of the problem, it begs the question if the Yankees front office will look to trade for a replacement.