Giancarlo Stanton's 2014 campaign didn't end the way he wanted it to, but that doesn't hold any bearing on the Miami Marlins slugger's expectations for himself and his team in 2015.
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Stanton missed the final 17 games after being hit in the face with a fastball last September, knocking him out of the National League MVP race.
Following surgery and a long offseason -- in which he netted a record 13-year $325 million deal -- Stanton doesn't believe the last pitch that he faced will change anything for him this season.
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"I haven't changed at all," Stanton said Tuesday during spring training, according to ESPN. "What happened to me isn't one of my focuses to get past. I'm just looking at this as a normal spring training."
The fastball to his face broke Stanton's orbital bone and caused damage to five of his teeth, but he has no fears entering 2015 and his expectations are high for a team that hasn't made the postseason since winning the World Series in 2003 - well before his career started.
"Yes," Stanton said when asked if he though Miami would be playoff bound. "We'll see. ... We have the caliber and talent to be there, of course. What we are going to do come August and September, that's up to us."
Stanton, 25, is set to be part of a highly touted young outfield for the Marlins this season with Christian Yelich in left and Marcell Ozuna in center. The Marlins even brought in veteran Ichiro Suzuki to play a role off the bench.
Stanton also believes that he will wear a face guard to protect his left cheek after getting hit last year.
"As long as it doesn't alter playing or seeing low balls, high balls, whatever, I plan to wear it," he said. "We'll just see how the games go."
The Marlins are hoping they're on the rise after finishing 77-85 and in fourth place in the NL East. It marked Miami's fifth straight sub .500 season and 11th consecutive campaign without a playoff berth.
Stanton had a great year in 2014, leading the NL in homers (37), total bases (299) and slugging percentage (.555) while finishing second in the league with 105 RBI.
Stanton and the Marlins feel they're ready for bigger things this season.
"He has unfinished business, because before that pitch he was my MVP," Marlins president of baseball operations Michael Hill said. "That injury sort of robbed him of that opportunity. And he has unfinished business with this team. He's the face of our team and wants to lead us."
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