While the Miami Marlins playoff chances are long past over heading into September, the team hopes to start building a little momentum for the offseason and 2016. Miami has been ravaged by injuries this season, none bigger than Giancarlo Stanton. 

Stanton has been out since June 27 with a fractued hamate bone in his left hand. Broken hamate bones typically take four-to-six weeks before a player returns, Stanton's recovery has certainly taken much longer than that. A slow recovery process with timetables repeatedly pushed back, some positive news is finally on the way.

After missing over two months, Stanton will take batting practice on Monday, which was first reported by the Miami Herald. It's a major step for Stanton, potentially allowing him to return to the lineup the following week after a rehab assignment, allowing his bat to get back to more full speed and get used to playing in games again.

Of course, Stanton's return will come likely too late for fantasy owners who have clung to Stanton all season. If your team makes it through the upcoming weeks, it's still hard to get too excited about Stanton's immediate return. Power slowly comes back coming off a broken hamate bone and power is Stanton's calling card.

 It was impossible to see this long of an absence for a fairly common injury, but it goes to show just how unpredictable baseball can be and how differently players recover from injuries. It's especially unfortunate considering Stanton's season ended last year when he was hit by a pitch.

A late return will let potential Stanton owners in 2016 see him back out on the field and know he is healthy. Injuries have really hurt him the past two seasons but when healthy, he is one of the best hitters in baseball and worth a first-round pick in fantasy leagues.