The Miami Marlins shut down outfielder Giancarlo Stanton amid his recovery from being hit in the face by an 88 mph pitch last week and the slugger is grateful that his injury wasn't worse and has been described as upbeat as he recuperates.
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Stanton was hit in the face by a fastball from Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Mike Fiers last Thursday and the National League MVP candidate is upbeat as he recovers from the gruesome injury. Stanton suffered facial fractions and lost some teeth, leading to the Marlins shutting down his season.
"The swelling is way down," Stanton said while meeting with the media for the first time since the incident, according to MLB.com. "Much better than I envisioned. Just got to get the grill fixed and go from there."
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Stanton, 24, won't fully recover for another six-to-eight weeks, but he said he would have loved to at least have had another game or at-bat in the 2014 campaign if possible.
"I would have, for sure," Stanton said. "I know you see the initial bang and think there is no way he could come back. But if physically if it was possible, I would have been the first to do so."
Stanton, who was struck just under the left eye, is thankful that the injuries he sustained weren't worse than they turned out to be.
"I was really fortunate," he said. "I could have my mouth wired shut now. I could have a plate in my face. I could have a lot of things. I'll take a few missing teeth over all of that."
Stanton also said he believes he's in a good mental state, but he wondered how confident he will be in facing another pitcher down the line. The slugger also said it was "awesome" that the Marlins have hung his No. 27 jersey in the dugout since the injury.
Stanton and Fiers have exchanged text messages since the incident.
"He said, obviously, it wasn't on purpose," Stanton said. "He said how sorry he was. It's been tough to sleep the first few nights and stuff. It was a good message."
While he will miss most of the last month of the season for the Marlins, Stanton remains an MVP candidate.
Stanton leads the NL with 37 homers and ranks second with 105 RBI The slugger also paces the NL in total bases (299), slugging percentage (.555) OPS (.950) and walks (94) while ranking third with a .395 on-base percentage.
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