DUNEDIN, Fla. — The swing Gregory Polanco had in the first half of 2016 is back. At least he said so. And it was on full display in the second inning of the Pirates' 5-0 win over the Blue Jays on Sunday at Dunedin Stadium.
Polanco crushed a hanging slider from Joe Biagini well over the right-field wall for a solo home run. He's now reached base safely in five consecutive games and six of his last seven. He's batting .316 this spring with a pair of solo home runs and a 1.118 OPS.
Although Grapefruit League production can be deceiving, Clint Hurdle agreed with Polanco that the revamped workout routine following an injury-shortened season has helped Polanco rediscover the athleticism he lost last season.
"We’ve seen it since he showed up at camp," Hurdle said. "He’s more athletic in the outfield. There’s more movement. Better secondary leads running the bases. The ability and desire to run is there again once he gets on. Outfield play routes have been crisp and more athletic there. The swing is more crisp. The ability to do more covering the plate away and in, where it was more one-dimensional last year. … He’s not as restricted. He looks really good."
Three stints on the disabled list — all the result of a left hamstring strain — limited Polanco to 108 games in 2017. He was ineffective when he was on the field, too, batting .251/.305/.391 with 11 home runs and 35 RBI to go with a career-worst OPS+ of 81. Any success at the plate — Polanco batted .387 in 17 games during July — was soon followed by more hamstring issues, which were the result of his upper-body-centric workout regimen the previous offseason.
The Pirates gave Polanco a new plan this past offseason that emphasized lower-body, lower back and core workouts. The idea was that a leaner, more athletic Polanco would not only keep him healthy, but help him tap the raw power he showed prior to 2017.
Polanco reached his first breakthrough in 2012 when he hit 16 home runs for Class A West Virginia. He made his major league debut in June 2014 and batted .301 through his first 23 games, only to see his average drop to .235 by the end of the season. He followed his debut with impressive seasons in 2015 and 2016, registering a OPS+ of 106 and 22 home runs in the latter.
He seemed destined to repeat that success after an impressive showing in both spring training and the World Baseball Classic last year, but Polanco said he now knows he never felt right physically in 2017.
"Last spring I never felt like that," he said. "Now I feel like I’m good shape. I feel my hips moving correctly. My hands are working good. Every day I’m feeling better and better. My hands this year are in the right position and I want to keep it that way for opening day."
Polanco has turned his focus to maintaining the work he did during the offseason. The Pirates have given him specific workouts for each part of his body, specifically his legs, in an effort to avoid another recurring hamstring injury.
Polanco expressed excitement upon reporting to Pirate City for spring training last month, but Hurdle wanted to see how the offseason work would translate onto the field. It's led to results this spring, and Polanco intends to continue that production for an entire season.
"For sure," Polanco replied when asked if his swing is back to '16 form. "That’s the feeling that I have right now. The swing is there. It’s easy. I don’t want to feel like I have to do too much to put the ball in the gap or like today with the home run. I don’t feel like I have to do too much. It was just easy moving my hands."
• Clay Holmes, a right-hander who made 24 starts at Triple-A Indianapolis last season, started and pitched three scoreless innings, allowing one hit with two strikeouts. The former ninth-round pick threw 30 of his 50 pitches for strikes and now has a 4.91 ERA in 7 1/3 innings this spring.
"I’ve steadily gotten better this spring and I think finally things came together today," Holmes, who underwent Tommy John surgery in 2014, said afterward. "I was getting ahead of batters and getting the ball on the ground, which is what I do when I’m at my best. That’s what happened today. A lot of positives to take from today."
Holmes, 24, is likely headed back to Triple-A, but he could become an option for the Pirates later this season, either in the rotation or as a reliever.
• Casey Sadler, Damien Magnifico, Jack Leathersich, John Stilson and Brett McKinney also pitched against the Blue Jays, combining to allow four hits in six innings.
• Adam Frazier went 2 for 4 with a two-run, opposite-field homer to left in the second inning — Polanco made it back-to-back home runs with his solo shot — and has now collected 10 hits in his last 15 at-bats. He's hitting .435 in nine games this spring, which has led to a number of questions from his teammates.
Frazier insists he isn't doing anything differently. In fact, his approach has been quite simple.
"Swinging at strikes helps," he said. "I’m just trying to swing easy. I’m telling the other guys — I guess they see me getting hits and stuff, so they start talking or asking — I’m just swinging easy. Put the barrel where you want it to go. If you hit the barrel more times than not, good things happen."
• Josh Bell, now batting .192 this spring, drove in a run in the first inning with a hard-hit line drive to center for a sacrifice fly, scoring Frazier. Also, Kevin Kramer started the four-run second inning with a run-scoring triple into the gap in right-center field.
• Austin Meadows, ranked the Pirates' second-best prospect according to Baseball America, batted seventh and started in center field, going 0 for 2 with a walk.
• Hurdle's lineup against the Blue Jays:
1. Adam Frazier, DH
2. Gregory Polanco, RF
3. Elias Diaz, C
4. Josh Bell, 1B
5. Jose Osuna, 3B
6. Bryce Brentz, LF
7. Austin Meadows, CF
8. Christopher Bostick, 2B
9. Kevin Kramer, SS
• The Pirates will host the Orioles at LECOM Park in Bradenton on Monday at 1:05 p.m. Tyler Glasnow is expected to start with Kyle Crick, Kevin Siegrist, Jordan Milbrath, Edgar Santana and Josh Smoker in relief. The game will be televised on AT&T SportsNet.