Yankees hopeful Stanton will return before end of regular season

Injured New York Yankees slugger Giancarlo Stanton is confident he'll return before the end of the regular season.

The 29-year-old told reporters on Thursday that he hopes to return in time to make an impact in September and October, according to MLB.com's Bryan Hoch.

Stanton has missed all but nine games this season due to various injuries, with the latest ailment coming in the form of a strained PCL in his right knee.

"The deadline is when my knee is ready to play major-league games," Stanton said in regard to an exact timetable for his return. "I can always get non-big-league at-bats, but (at a skill level) close to big-league pitching to catch me up."

Yankees general manager Brian Cashman and manager Aaron Boone also believe Stanton will be back by next month.

"That's our hope," Cashman said. "We've done a lot of great things despite missing some very talented players, and he's included in that. That's an impact bat. He's not just the designated hitter, he's much more than that. He's an athletic outfielder, too, despite his size."

"Hopefully we'll be in a position to utilize him. We do expect him at some point, but he's also coming back from a pretty serious injury that takes time to heal. We'll just keep waiting on it and hope that at some point he becomes a legitimate option for us."

Stanton hit 38 homers and drove in 100 runs during his debut campaign with the Yankees last season.