Pirates' Starling Marte leading Gregory Polanco to stardom
BRADENTON, Fla. - Starling Marte wouldn't take the bait. When told Miami Marlins center fielder Marcell Ozuna had said – respectfully – that he believes his team has the best outfield in baseball, the Pittsburgh Pirates' gifted left fielder smiled and replied, "We'll see the results at the end of the year.''
Moments later, away from Marte's ear shot, Pirates right fielder Gregory Polanco was presented the same chance to respond to Ozuna. Polanco offered nearly the exact same words.
Well learned.
As he enters his first full season with Pittsburgh, less as an overhyped prospect and more as a maturing player learning how to survive in the majors, Polanco has the right mentor in Marte, a fellow Dominican who, at 26, is three years older and has traveled this route before.
Marte reached the majors in 2012, arriving with stellar minor-league credentials and enormous talent, but it took him a while to understand what pitchers were trying to do to him and how to counter it. Last season he took off, especially in the second half, setting career highs with a .291 batting average, .808 on base plus slugging and 13 homers while stealing 30 bases.
Polanco – who made a huge splash in the days after his big-league debut in June, only to come crashing down to earth – is in the midst of that apprenticeship now.
"The friendship they have, they help each other out,'' Pittsburgh hitting coach Jeff Branson said. "It took Marte a couple of years to figure this out. Well, Polanco could be ahead of the game because of the experience Marte went through. Hopefully that process will get cut in half.''
If so, Polanco could indeed tilt the discussion of the game's best outfield the Pirates' way. They can already make a case as the best defensive unit with three natural center fielders. Marte and Polanco played the position in the minors regularly but flank former NL MVP and Gold Glove winner Andrew McCutchen with the Pirates.
The offensive side may be determined by Polanco's ability to assimilate the mental part of the game and make adjustments where necessary, as Marte has.
While on the disabled list with a concussion in late July, Marte implemented Branson's suggestion that he spread his legs in his batting stance and lower his hands, which ideally would help him read pitches and cut down on his strikeouts.
The results were dramatic. Marte batted .354 with eight homers and a .975 OPS in the final two months of the season, and his strikeout rate indeed improved. He has carried over the changes into this spring, when he's batting .333.
"I can see the pitches better, especially the breaking pitches, which hurt me the most,'' Marte said. "With this new stance I'm ready before the pitcher releases the ball, I'm more focused. At first it was uncomfortable, but as you work on it every day you feel more confident.''
Marte's development has highlighted the wisdom of the Pirates' decision to extend him before last season, when they signed him to a six-year, $31 million deal. They already have McCutchen under contract through 2018 and have inquired about reaching a multiyear agreement with Polanco, whose potential is tantalizing.
While the lefty-swinging Polanco was tearing up the Class AAA International League last season, the clamor among Pirates fans for his promotion got continually louder, and he seemed to prove them right by hitting cleanly in his first 11 games. Then baseball reality rudely intruded and Polanco batted .204 in his final 78 games, becoming an afterthought toward the end of the season as the Pirates marched to the playoffs.
He did pick up some knowledge along the way.
"The amount of information in the big leagues,'' Polanco said when asked what was the biggest lesson he learned as a rookie. "They get a book on you right away and find out what you can do and can't do. It's up to me to adjust back.''
The first step in that direction required Polanco to do something that felt completely unnatural to him – stop playing the game. The Pirates asked him to skip winter ball and rest, after he had played continuously for more than a year and a half.
"I've always played and played the game,'' Polanco said. "That's what I enjoy. That's my passion. I absolutely love it.''
Polanco put his efforts instead on working out with the chiseled Marte, who lives 15 minutes away in the capital city of Santo Domingo, and he added 15 solid pounds to his 6-5 frame, checking in at a still-swift 220. The player known as "El Coffee'' stole 14 bases as a rookie and intends to retain speed as one of his tools.
The long layoff did hurt Polanco's timing early in camp, but he said his swing feels right now, just in time for the season to start. Polanco also feels better prepared for the inevitable ups and downs he'll experience as a major leaguer, and knows he can turn to Marte at any time of need.
"We're so far away from our family, so far away from our country,'' said Polanco, who's batting .250 in Grapefruit League play. "To have somebody who's that trustworthy, somebody you know from several years back, it feels like family. You feel supported. You're not by yourself anymore. I'm very grateful to him.''
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