Giancarlo Stanton Expected To Return Thursday against Cincinnati Reds

Apr 13, 2013; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Marlins right fielder Giancarlo Stanton (27) sits in the dugout during the first inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Marlins Park. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

After another loss for the Miami Marlins to the hands of the Washington Nationals, the Marlins received good news. Giancarlo Stanton is expected to return to the Marlins lineup on Thursday night, against the Cincinnati Reds. Jose Fernandez will be pitching in the game for the Marlins. Stanton missed the previous six Marlins games with a shoulder contusion.

Stanton hit 37 homers in just 123 games last season, posting an impressive .290/.361/.608 slash line. Stanton posted a career high 5.7 WAR according to Fangraphs. Stanton is off to a slow start in 2013, hitting to a .167/.342/.233 line. He has yet to hit a home run this season.

Through his first two full seasons in the majors, Stanton has never hit well in the season’s opening month, something  mentioned in a post telling fans not to panic about Stanton’s slow start.

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Stanton’s return to the lineup should help a weak hitting lineup that has scored just 32 runs on the season in 15 games. In fact, if you remove the 8 runs the Marlins scored on Tuesday night, the team would be averaging less than two runs a ball game.

Even with the slow start, Zips has Stanton projected to hit .281/.366/.590 the rest of the season with 35 home runs. The projection system has Stanton posting another 5 win season for the team.