Pollock back to looking like his old self
A.J. Pollock isn’t one to live in the past. What’s done is done. All he cares about is the next at-bat or the next chance in center field. The rest of it is noise.
So when you ask him if it’s particularly gratifying to be contributing the way he is after being sidelined three weeks with a groin strain he looks at you as if the question makes no sense whatsoever.
“I don’t think it really works to my advantage when I put more stock into trying to prove myself and really show them,” Pollock said before the Diamondbacks’ game Tuesday against Atlanta. “I don’t think it does me any good. So I just enjoy the moment, have fun and try to help us win games.” He’s doing just that. Since coming off the disabled list July 4, Pollock is hitting .315 with six doubles, two triples, three homers and seven RBIs, with an OPS of 1.040. In his last 25 at-bats, he’s hitting .480 with
nine extra-base hits. In the series opener against Atlanta on Monday, Pollock went 3 for 5 with two doubles, a homer and four RBIs, and Atlanta third baseman Freddie Freeman robbed him of another double with a leaping grab of a line drive.
Simply put, Pollock looks like the player he was in 2015 when he hit .315 with 20 homers, 76 RBIs and 39 stolen bases and was an All-Star and Gold Glove recipient.
“I’ve felt really good for a couple of weeks,” Pollock said. “I think I’m just finding a pitch I can handle and driving it.”
There’s more to it than that, of course. Manager Torey Lovullo said Pollock is in a perfect hitting position at the plate: Head still, hands back, weight balanced. Plus, Lovullo said, Pollock is seeing the ball well so he’s not swinging at pitches outside the strike zone.
“And then once he gets through that he’s not missing the pitch he’s getting and he’s impacting the baseball,” Lovullo said. “We know that he’s a very dynamic offensive player and when you have all those key ingredients and you’re starting to work through what we’re talking about and you don’t miss the ball, you become a special guy.”
Lovullo also believes that the three weeks Pollock spent on the disabled list may have been beneficial. Pollock is hard on his body when he plays, whether it’s crashing into the center-field wall or trying to take an extra base. The rest – although unwanted – has given Pollock a bit more juice.
“Maybe his body is a little bit strong- er, less fatigued, and he’s able to repeat things and he’s able to get in that position more consistently,” Lovullo said. “I think what happens is when you get tired and into the grind of the season, your body can’t duplicate things. So I think he’s in a very good place for several reasons but the main one is all the hard work that he’s putting in behind the scenes to make sure that these are consistent moments for him.”
Although it has to be tempting to put Pollock’s name in the lineup card every day, Lovullo continues to give him regular days off with the hope Pollock will be healthy and rested the last two months of the season. Tuesday was the eighth straight game in which Pollock has played but he didn’t start in two of the games.
“We know that A.J.’s had a tough year injury-wise,” Lovullo said. “We just have to remember what the big picture is here. We want to make sure that when August is upon us and we’re playing those type of meaningful games in September that we’re anticipating playing that one of our best players is able to go out there and perform like he is right now. He spoils us because he can look so special and spectacular at times, and we want to preserve that as best that we possibly can.”