KC Royals fans should hope Cardinals do not land Giancarlo Stanton

Why it may not happen

There are chances that these rumors will prove to be nothing but that. It’s obvious why the Miami Marlins are shopping Stanton now. He is about to become a lot more expensive and is coming off arguably the best season of his career. Having just turned 28 years old, he is in the traditional prime age bracket right now.

Stanton’s injury struggles are also well documented, as 2017 was the first season he played 150 games or more since 2011.

Additionally, there has been an ownership change in Miami, and it’s been speculated that the new ownership group wants to do something that Marlins fans will be familiar with; cut payroll.

Stanton is due a total of $77 million over the next three seasons, making him a serious investment on the payroll side for any acquiring team. That investment only balloons after the 2020 season if he decides not to opt out of his contract, which would put an acquiring team on the hook for another $218 million at least.

Entering his age-31 season at the time of his opt-out and perhaps unlikely to find a better deal on the free agent market, the chances that he may not opt out are good. Any team that acquires him should prepare for the worst and hope for the best in that regard.

Stanton’s injury struggles are also well documented, as 2017 was the first season he played 150 games or more since 2011. If Stanton reverts to playing 70-120 games per season over the next three years and beyond, that’s a lot of payroll simply rehabbing from injury.