Giancarlo Stanton on Miami Marlins: ‘No more backpedaling’

Reporting from Minneapolis —  The Dodgers appear fully stocked in the outfield, but could they pass on a chance to bring Giancarlo Stanton home?

Stanton, 24, leads the National League in home runs. He played high school ball at Notre Dame Sherman Oaks, and his friends often ask him when he will come home to play.

“All the time,” Stanton said Monday, before he participated in the All-Star Game home run derby. “They’re like, ‘You need to come play for us.’ I do get that, especially after we go and play there.”

Stanton said that playing for the hometown team was “the original dream, when you’re a kid.” As a major leaguer, he remains under the control of the Miami Marlins through the 2016 season, although the Marlins could trade him for a huge return if they were convinced he would not sign an extension to stay in Miami.

Power is increasingly scarce in the major leagues, particularly from such a young player, and virtually every team that could afford to pay him would line up to trade for him.

“I want to win,” Stanton said. “If we’re prepared to win, I want to stay.”

Does he believe the Marlins are prepared to win?

“Look at the record,” he said.

The Marlins are in fourth place in the National League East, at 44-50. They have not posted a winning record since Stanton made his debut in 2010.

Stanton said he believed the Marlins were headed in the right direction before injuries hit. They were in first place as recently as May 9 and above .500 as recently as June 20.

“We need to keep progressing,” he said. “No more backpedaling or revamping.”