Giancarlo Stanton Returns To Marlins- As Pinch Hitter

For one at bat a game anyway, the Marlins will once again be able to strike fear into the heart of any pitcher they come across.

Giancarlo Stanton is back.

Off the bench only though, at least for the moment. The Miami Marlins made the announcement Tuesday afternoon, and just a few hours later, he was in the lineup squaring up against Phillies starter Adam Morgan.

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The result? Scorching liner deep to the outfield, one of those signature Stanton singles that leaves you wondering how a ball hit that far could possibly only be a single, until you check out the exit velocity and realize the ball might as well have been teleported to the outfielder’s feet. The swing was effortless, as if he never left the lineup three weeks ago.

It would have even been a run scoring hit, if Xavier Scruggs had remembered he wasn’t Dee Gordon in time to stop himself from stupidly trying to advance from first to third during the previous at bat.

And it’s not just Stanton. Justin Bour is back as well, in the same capacity of power pinch-hitting extraordinaire. Bour walked on four pitches, scarcely having to move his bat in his own semi-return to the lineup.

The addition of this kind of power to the bench could pay huge dividends, at least in terms of securing that elusive winning season. Set aside the fact that it was Ichiro Suzuki providing the pinch-hit home run boost last night, in what was probably one of my favorite moments of the season. The luxury of September is that deeper bench that roster expansion allows, and with some more of the creative handling we saw last night, there’s no doubt this will translate to wins.

Next: Scoring Up, Pitching Down

Enough for a big playoff run? That’s never felt more unlikely than it does this morning after a series loss at home to a team as terrible as Philadelphia. But enough to capture that elusive winning season the Marlins have been seeking since 2009?

It just could be.