LOS ANGELES — All that’s left to write is the fairy-tale ending.
Otherwise, Giancarlo Stanton couldn’t have written a better script.
In his 15th year in the major leagues, he has at last reached the apex of his sport, in the World Series for the first time. And the team standing in his way is the one he grew up rooting for, the powerhouse Dodgers.
“It doesn’t get bigger than this in our sport,” Stanton said Thursday at Dodger Stadium. “It’s everything you dream for in a matchup and everything you would want.”
The slugging designated hitter attended nearby Verdugo Hills and Notre Dame high schools and frequently attended Dodgers games as a kid.
He looked up to a number of power hitters, from Mark McGwire, Mike Piazza and Gary Sheffield to Ken Griffey Jr. and Barry Bonds.
“My favorite moments here were probably the little things,” Stanton recalled. “Going to batting practice, hearing the sound of the bat in the empty stadium. Going in the outfield to play catch is where I learned my big league depth perception. And arguing with the scalpers, trying to get a ticket and buy peanuts.”
He has certainly looked comfortable in his hometown.
Across 25 games throughout his career at Dodger Stadium, Stanton has 10 home runs, 26 RBIs and a .309 average in 25 games.
One of those homers, hit May 12, 2015, left the stadium entirely at an estimated 475 feet.
He was also the MVP of the 2022 All-Star Game at Chavez Ravine.
“That Cali air, man,” Stanton, baseball’s active home runs leader with 429 long balls, said with a smile. “I grew up with it.”
He’s hit in every climate this month.
In New York, in Kansas City and in Cleveland, Stanton has been an offensive force, producing massive hits — he has five homers and 11 RBIs — and getting on base at a high frequency.
But this isn’t the goal.
It’s to win it all, Stanton has said a few times since the Yankees reached the Fall Classic for the first time in 15 years last Saturday.
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“I got a few games to do well still,” Stanton said. “Can’t worry about the past.”
When the series became official, with the Dodgers beating the Mets Sunday night, Stanton said he turned off his phone.
He didn’t want the distractions that come with a homecoming on such a big stage.
This is still a business trip.
But the fact that he will make his World Series debut Friday night in the stadium he frequented as a kid isn’t lost on him, either.
“It means everything to be here,” he said. “This is the most incredible time I’ve had [playing baseball], and it’s a special time to be here, for sure.”
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