Position: OF
Height: 6’0”
Weight: 168 lbs
Bats/Throws: L/L
Born: 02/06/2004
Country: Dominican Republic
How Acquired: International Free Agent, 2021
Bonus: $2,300,000
40-man Roster: No
Rule 5 Eligible: 2025
Minor League Free Agency: 2027
Options Left: 3
Overview
Polanco was the Pirates’ top international signing during the 2020-21 signing period, which started January 15 due to the pandemic. He has a line-drive swing with the bat speed to hit for good power. His speed isn’t great, but it’s good enough that he has a chance to stick in center field, and his arm is probably about average.
2021-22
Polanco got off to a rough start in the DSL, with a .440 OPS in July and .582 in August, striking out in a third of his ABs. He started coming around in September, batting 271/323/458 and cutting the strikeouts down sharply. He played center exclusively. In 2022 in the FCL, Polanco again primarily played center. His hitting improved some, but he remained very susceptible to breaking balls out of the strike zone. He seemed to be making a lot of progress in July, when he batted 319/373/511, but he slumped again in August and finished with numbers only a little better than the previous year’s. Oddly, Polanco had a very large reverse platoon split.
2023-24
Polanco spent the 2023 season with Bradenton. He followed his pattern of starting slowly, with a .596 OPS in April after missing the first week with an injury. In May, improved power started to emerge. He hit six home runs each in May and June, with OPS figures of .755 and .910, respectively. Unfortunately, in mid-July he got hurt and didn’t return. His plate discipline was borderline, including after he started hitting well. He had a walk rate of 9.6% and strikeout rate of 28.8%. Polanco played the entire season at age 19 in a league where the average hitter was 21.
In 2024, Polanco returned to Bradenton and regressed, batting just 191/280/343. He still showed some power, with 11 home runs, but his K rate remained very high at 31% and he didn’t improve during the season. He had a terrible time with LHPs, putting up just a .348 OPS. Polanco spent the most time in center, which shows the Pirates are still hopeful he’ll turn into a prospect, but he was about an average age for the league and he still can’t handle the pitching.
Stats
Transactions
January 15, 2021: Signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates as an international free agent.