Giancarlo Stanton wanted to come back this season but the Miami Marlins made it official on Wednesday that he will not.

Stanton is recovering from a serious injury to his face that involved fractures. Those will heal on their own but it will take over a month. There would be a major risk involved in playing prior to being fully recovered. With the team out of playoff contention, there was no benefit at all to taking such a risk. It's very likely that even if the team was still in the hunt, Stanton would not be on the field.

On Tuesday, Stanton shared an image of his injuries as well as his recovery thus far. A drastic improvement is noticeable immediately but those fractures are still less than a week old. They are non-displaced fractures which means surgery wasn't necessary. Playing in competitive games could hinder the recovery process especially for a player who goes all out on the field like Stanton.

The slugger finishes his 2014 season with a slashline of .288/.395/.555. His OPS of .950 was the second best of his career trailing only 2012. Stanton amassed 37 home runs and brought home 105 runs. He also doubled 31 times and stole 13 bases which was easily the highest total of his career. With several fine defensive plays in right field and an arm that is feared around the league, Stanton showed production in every facet of the game.

Stanton could still take home the MVP award for the National League despite his shortened year. One man who could get in the way of that is Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers. The ace is sure to win the Cy Young award for a second straight season but could also be named MVP after a stellar year. Despite missing several starts at the beginning of the season, Kershaw has 19 wins and has dominated all of baseball.

Stanton is under team control for two more seasons and is expected to remain a key piece for the Marlins going into 2015.