Giancarlo Stanton just wants the focus to be on the Miami Marlins

Apr 21, 2017; San Diego, CA, USA; Miami Marlins right fielder Giancarlo Stanton (27) at bat during the first inning against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 21, 2017; San Diego, CA, USA; Miami Marlins right fielder Giancarlo Stanton (27) at bat during the first inning against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

The Miami Marlins superstar slugger just wants everyone to put the focus back on his team.

With the emergence of New York Yankees rookie slugger Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton has been repeatedly bombarded with questions about similarities between the two outfielders.

And yes, the similarities are very much there.

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Yet with Judge just coming off one of the greatest April performances for a rookie in MLB history, to Stanton it seemed to be all he heard about.

He’d prefer the questions be directed toward his team and how they are doing.

It can’t possibly be anything like jealousy; it’s more simply about keeping the focus where it really does belong.

Instead, they have all been geared toward comparing him to some kid who’s really yet to be fully established in the big leagues.

He made that clear to the media on Friday.

Joe Trezza of MLB.com tweeted about his own Friday encounter with the Marlins’ biggest bat

It’s true that beyond Judge’s April explosion of 10 home runs, 20 RBI and a slash line of .303/.411/.750, he’s not even remotely as established in the game as Stanton despite being just over two years younger.

Stanton has the huge contact, is the reigning Home Run Derby champion and, in spite of his many stints on the disabled list, has always returned just as powerful as he was before. He is indeed, arguably, the game’s most powerful home run hitter.

Then Judge burst onto the scene and the similarities between the two players became just too hard for anyone to miss. Stanton is six feet, six inches tall and weighs in at 245 pounds. Judge is six feet, seven inches tall and weighs 282 pounds.

While Stanton’s numbers weren’t quite what Judge’s were in April, they were close. Not to mention the fact that they are the only players with multiple home runs with exit velocities over 118 mph.

The similarities do not end there either.

Both had troubles, as many power hitters do, with strikeouts early in their careers, which they have now both obviously overcome. Plus, they both are intimidating in their sheer size alone which has led to whispers about performance enhancing drugs in regards to both players.

To be clear, neither one has ever actually been linked to PEDs and that was the one thing in which Stanton could find some camaraderie with Judge, whom he has yet to meet, according to MLB.com.

“Guys like us, me and him, shouldn’t even have to come up with the doubt,” Stanton said, “even though it makes sense because of what happened previously. But he’s had that power his whole life. I’ve had that power my whole life.”

So perhaps Stanton is softening a bit toward his rookie counterpart. They do share some serious common ground in that aspect.

Even still, Marlins skipper Don Mattingly couldn’t help but compare the two players himself.

“I think those comparisons with Giancarlo are fair. They even kind of look a little bit similar. They are two guys who hit the ball extremely far, extremely hard.”

Truer words were likely never said. Both sluggers hit the ball, and when they do it leaves the yard at a very rapid rate.

Next: Curt Schilling continues to be an embarrassment

However, it might be a good idea to start mixing in some Marlins-related questions when talking to Giancarlo Stanton whether you’re a member of the media or one very lucky baseball fan.