Hears, and feels, fans’ displeasure
There’s no escape for struggling OF
Gregory Polanco is one of the nicest and most likable professional athletes you could ever meet. But his signature smile has been harder and harder to find. He has struggled but remained in the lineup, and fans have seemingly lost patience with the entire thing.
On Wednesday night, as PNC Park welcomed one of its smallest crowds of the season, Polanco heard booing, name-calling and chants urging the Pirates to designate him for assignment, the result of how much he’s struggled on the field.
Speaking before Thursday’s game, Polanco addressed some of the vitriol and criticism, answering one question about his reaction to that sort of stuff for nearly three minutes before ending the interview and walking down the steps to the Pirates clubhouse.
“It’s tough. It’s not nice,” Polanco said of how Pirates fans have treated him. “They have to understand, I’m a human being, too. This is my work. This is my job. I don’t want to do bad. I eat because of this. Baseball is how I get paid, so I want to do great every time.
“That’s not nice to hear that. All the fans are like, ‘Release him! DFA him! Send him back.’ They don’t understand. They don’t know how hard it is. I’m doing 100% every day to get better.
“This has been a hard year for me. This is my free agent year. I want to do better. I want to do well. I want to keep playing baseball until I can’t. I don’t want to retire. I don’t want to be home. I want to be on the baseball field. This is what I love. [Fans] don’t understand, and that [stinks].”
The Pirates on Sunday put Polanco on outright waivers to see if any playoff-bound teams might want him for the stretch run. It was misreported locally, and the story became that the Pirates were trying to sever ties with Polanco.
That hasn’t been the case. The Pirates have not decreased Polanco’s playing time, to the consternation of fans who’ve heard Cherington and manager Derek Shelton emphasize available opportunities and giving younger players a look.
Polanco, who has cleared waivers, was starting again Thursday as the Pirates opened a four-game series against the Cardinals. The previous night, Polanco let a ball roll under his glove in right field, though he did go 2 for 4 with a double at the plate.
“It’s my decision,” Shelton said of continuing to play Polanco. “He had two hits [Wednesday] night. It’s my decision to put him in the lineup against [Miles] Mikolas, a lefty. I know last night he made an error, but he’s played well defensively. I think that would be the easiest answer for you guys.”
Statistically speaking, no players with 300 or more plate appearances this season have been worth fewer than Polanco’s Wins Above Replacement (WAR), according to FanGraphs. The Pirates right fielder has been worth -1.2.
Among the 198 players who fall into that category, only three have been worth fewer than -0.4 WAR: Atlanta’s Jorge Soler (-1.0), Cincinnati’s Eugenio Suarez (-1.1) and Polanco.
“People are going to have their opinions,” Shelton said. “Fans are going to have their opinions. I appreciate that, and I appreciate their passion. Like I’ve told you guys numerous times, the issue I would have with Gregory or any player on our team would be effort. I would be hard-pressed for anybody who’s watched us play to say that he has not had extremely good effort all year long.”
Whether the Pirates DFA Polanco or not, it’s hard to see him staying with the Pirates in 2022. They can pick up his $12.5 million option or buy him out for $3 million.
Considering he was hitting just .203 with a .625 OPS through 105 games, it may be the easiest offseason decision they face. Polanco also appears to know this judging by his comments about this being a free agent year.
The tough part with Polanco is that he’s been a terrific teammate and a constant source of positivity. The results have just been bad, he has no future with the team, and the Pirates remain committed to playing Polanco.
“You never hear nothing wrong about me outside of the baseball field,” Polanco said. “I like to play baseball. I love the fans. You ask around the city how I am, how I treat people. They’re gonna say all the time. I’m a nice person. … That’s hard to hear that, from the fans who are supposed to support us. Even though we’re not playing great, it’s not nice.”
Thursday was the Pirates’ 24th game in August. They were just 6-17 entering the night, with Polanco having started 21. Meanwhile, Polanco was hitting .197 this month with a .469 OPS, his lowest of any month this season. Among outfielders in either league, only Wil Myers of the Padres has been worth fewer Defensive Runs Saved (-9) than Polanco (-8), again per FanGraphs.
But when Polanco missed a routine ball Wednesday, he certainly heard about it.
“I try to keep that out of my mind even though it’s hard not to,” Polanco said. “There are only like 5,000 people here. You hear everything. Nobody wants to make errors. Nobody wants to strike out. If you’re a hitter, you want to hit. I don’t know why they’re doing that to me. I know I’m not playing great, but I’m trying to get better every day.
“I’m playing my [butt] off every day. I’m trying to get better. This is the game that I love. [Fans] have to understand that.”
“It’s tough. It’s not nice. They have to understand, I’m a human being, too. This is my work. This is my job. I don’t want to do bad.”
— Gregory Polanco