In the old days, before free agency, most players signed year-to-year contracts. These days players command long-term, guaranteed contracts. In essence players are investments...Long-term assets.
When you have as much committed money ($30,000,000 through 2021) in players like Polanco, it makes poor business sense to release or fire them when they don't perform. You could trade him, but as a distressed asset, you will get a very diluted return.
Basically the best option is to rehabilitate a distressed asset. I believe Bobster may have been among the first to suggest he go to Indy to find his swing. I would say send him wherever the top swing coach in the organization is. Generally the best teams have the best players. They usually have the better coaches as well. I really question the teaching credentials of the coaches in Pittsburgh. I could go into a manifesto on why, but I think that would be preaching to the choir.
Four years ago I thought Jason Heyward was good, but one of the most overrated players in baseball. The Cards got him in 2015 for $7.8M. In my mind, the Cubs shockingly overpaid for Heyward the next year. He made 21.7M in 2016, and 28.1M in 2017 and 2018 – and there is a lot more pain to come. Since 2016 his stats are very comparable to Polanco’s – although Heyward is much better defensively – just not 24M a year better than Polanco.
The Cubs are stuck with him. On a lesser scale, the Bucs are stuck with Polanco. Like everyone else I would much prefer to see Dickerson, Marte, and Meadows in the lineup each night. But I imagine Cub fans would rather see someone other than Heyward in their lineup. Polanco and Bell have had decent years before, so they have it in them. It is their responsibility, along with the organization, to refine and rehabilitate their games. Personally, I don’t believe playing a distressed player like Polanco 3 out 4 days makes sense. However, from a business standpoint, it doesn’t make sense to give up on him either. Send him to Indy, Altoona, or Bristol for all I care. Just come up with a better plan than what we have now.
Polanco -- A Distressed Asset
Moderators: SammyKhalifa, Doc, Bobster
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Wrathchild
- Posts: 152
- Joined: Wed Jul 06, 2016 6:23 pm
Polanco -- A Distressed Asset
There are a number of things I agree with in your post, but the problem with the post and, I suspect, about 94% of the posts that will follow is that Polanco wasn't hurting the team until about a week ago. He's in a terrible slump at that moment, but his OPS+ was around 120 not that long ago.
Yeah, there's the defense but that's overblown as well. Polanco has been an average to slightly above average right fielder for several years. He didn't forget how to play defense this year. It's unclear how much you can rely on defensive metrics for 50 games. This year, for instance, Marte's numbers are worse than Polanco's. Frazier has better numbers at second base than Harrison. Are we going to accept that stuff as well?
The four person rotation is actually an interesting and probably good idea. Marte is coming off an injury, Polanco and Meadows have had tons of injury problems and Dickerson fell apart in the second half last year with most people thinking he was overworked.
I'm sure Polanco will get better again and it might keep everyone healthy.
Yeah, there's the defense but that's overblown as well. Polanco has been an average to slightly above average right fielder for several years. He didn't forget how to play defense this year. It's unclear how much you can rely on defensive metrics for 50 games. This year, for instance, Marte's numbers are worse than Polanco's. Frazier has better numbers at second base than Harrison. Are we going to accept that stuff as well?
The four person rotation is actually an interesting and probably good idea. Marte is coming off an injury, Polanco and Meadows have had tons of injury problems and Dickerson fell apart in the second half last year with most people thinking he was overworked.
I'm sure Polanco will get better again and it might keep everyone healthy.
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dogknot17@yahoo.co
Polanco -- A Distressed Asset
I don't know if Polanco was commanding a long term deal. The Pirates offered him a guarantee $25 million before he even played a MLB game and he turned it down.
The Pirates tried to get him locked up before he exploded as the top player they predicted. It was a big risk then and probably even bigger now.
The Pirates tried to get him locked up before he exploded as the top player they predicted. It was a big risk then and probably even bigger now.
Polanco -- A Distressed Asset
Josh Bell should immediately be switched with Osuna.
It's time we play our best young firstbaseman and stop this insanity. Let Bell figure this out on his own time, we've had enough. He's not even close. He can't hit and his defense almost cost us again in the 9th.
Polanco certainly isn't anywhere the defender Marte or Meadows are. Dickerson is pretty clearly better as well. So that leaves the hitting.
Well he's not better than Dickerson or Marte offensively and certainly not Meadows while he's hot like this.
So he's a clearly worse fielding OF and a clearly worse fielding OF. Sure, why not do a 4 man rotation? $cew it, right? Whatever the org thinks is best
It's time we play our best young firstbaseman and stop this insanity. Let Bell figure this out on his own time, we've had enough. He's not even close. He can't hit and his defense almost cost us again in the 9th.
Polanco certainly isn't anywhere the defender Marte or Meadows are. Dickerson is pretty clearly better as well. So that leaves the hitting.
Well he's not better than Dickerson or Marte offensively and certainly not Meadows while he's hot like this.
So he's a clearly worse fielding OF and a clearly worse fielding OF. Sure, why not do a 4 man rotation? $cew it, right? Whatever the org thinks is best
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Wrathchild
- Posts: 152
- Joined: Wed Jul 06, 2016 6:23 pm
Polanco -- A Distressed Asset
242D25343A400 wrote: Josh Bell should immediately be switched with Osuna.
It's time we play our best young firstbaseman and stop this insanity. Let Bell figure this out on his own time, we've had enough. He's not even close
He can't hit and his defense almost cost us again in the 9th.
Josh Bell laughs as he attempts to swat this collective board off his jock.
It's time we play our best young firstbaseman and stop this insanity. Let Bell figure this out on his own time, we've had enough. He's not even close
He can't hit and his defense almost cost us again in the 9th.
Josh Bell laughs as he attempts to swat this collective board off his jock.
Polanco -- A Distressed Asset
5B7E6D78646F646560680C0 wrote: Josh Bell should immediately be switched with Osuna.
It's time we play our best young firstbaseman and stop this insanity. Let Bell figure this out on his own time, we've had enough. He's not even close
He can't hit and his defense almost cost us again in the 9th.
Josh Bell laughs as he attempts to swat this collective board off his jock.
I think you have an appeal to authority problem, wrathchild. Cant criticize Polanco, can criticize Bell. A career .770 OPS 1st baseman now, in 900+ plate appearances lol
Keep beeing a good org soldier buddy. Whatever works for you
It's time we play our best young firstbaseman and stop this insanity. Let Bell figure this out on his own time, we've had enough. He's not even close
He can't hit and his defense almost cost us again in the 9th.
Josh Bell laughs as he attempts to swat this collective board off his jock.
I think you have an appeal to authority problem, wrathchild. Cant criticize Polanco, can criticize Bell. A career .770 OPS 1st baseman now, in 900+ plate appearances lol
Keep beeing a good org soldier buddy. Whatever works for you
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Wrathchild
- Posts: 152
- Joined: Wed Jul 06, 2016 6:23 pm
Polanco -- A Distressed Asset
404941505E240 wrote: Josh Bell should immediately be switched with Osuna.
It's time we play our best young firstbaseman and stop this insanity. Let Bell figure this out on his own time, we've had enough. He's not even close
He can't hit and his defense almost cost us again in the 9th.
Josh Bell laughs as he attempts to swat this collective board off his jock.
I think you have an appeal to authority problem, wrathchild. Cant criticize Polanco, can criticize Bell. A career .770 OPS 1st baseman now, in 900+ plate appearances lol
Keep beeing a good org soldier buddy. Whatever works for you
Appeal to authority problem? No, I simply think it’s absurd that every other post is about Polanco’s failures while nobody wants to say anything about Bell who is still performing even worse than Polanco.
It's time we play our best young firstbaseman and stop this insanity. Let Bell figure this out on his own time, we've had enough. He's not even close
He can't hit and his defense almost cost us again in the 9th.
Josh Bell laughs as he attempts to swat this collective board off his jock.
I think you have an appeal to authority problem, wrathchild. Cant criticize Polanco, can criticize Bell. A career .770 OPS 1st baseman now, in 900+ plate appearances lol
Keep beeing a good org soldier buddy. Whatever works for you
Appeal to authority problem? No, I simply think it’s absurd that every other post is about Polanco’s failures while nobody wants to say anything about Bell who is still performing even worse than Polanco.
Polanco -- A Distressed Asset
I can't imagine there is one person on this board that doesn't want Both Bell and Polanco to succeed. But right now they look bad, and well, in distress. Last year Polanco struck out 60 times in 411 at bats --14.5%. This year he has K'd 51 times in 179 At bats --- 28.5%. He looks lost.
I don't even know how to describe Bell's swing. He needs a swing doctor immediately. I have wondered in the last week or so if those two could be resurrected, a la Cole and Morton, under different supervision?
These two are important assets. They might figure it out on their own, but perhaps a fresh eye could help the process?
I don't even know how to describe Bell's swing. He needs a swing doctor immediately. I have wondered in the last week or so if those two could be resurrected, a la Cole and Morton, under different supervision?
These two are important assets. They might figure it out on their own, but perhaps a fresh eye could help the process?
Polanco -- A Distressed Asset
7F78544355360 wrote: I can't imagine there is one person on this board that doesn't want Both Bell and Polanco to succeed. But right now they look bad, and well, in distress. Last year Polanco struck out 60 times in 411 at bats --14.5%. This year he has K'd 51 times in 179 At bats --- 28.5%. He looks lost.
I don't even know how to describe Bell's swing. He needs a swing doctor immediately. I have wondered in the last week or so if those two could be resurrected, a la Cole and Morton, under different supervision?
These two are important assets. They might figure it out on their own, but perhaps a fresh eye could help the process?
Bell's swing has always looked unorthodox. When he is going well you just don't worry about it I guess. He does have one of the ugliest swings I've ever seen from an MLB player.
I don't even know how to describe Bell's swing. He needs a swing doctor immediately. I have wondered in the last week or so if those two could be resurrected, a la Cole and Morton, under different supervision?
These two are important assets. They might figure it out on their own, but perhaps a fresh eye could help the process?
Bell's swing has always looked unorthodox. When he is going well you just don't worry about it I guess. He does have one of the ugliest swings I've ever seen from an MLB player.
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DemDog
Polanco -- A Distressed Asset
About Bell, not sure but thought I heard earlier in the year from the Rock or other analyst that Bell is always tinkering with his swing. Even the Inside Pirates Baseball segment showing how Bell learned to hit from his dad and does so even now during the off-season showed that. Perhaps Bell needs to find something that will work most of the time and just stay with it without all the tinkering.
As for the play in the 9th last nite. That ball was a bullet coming at him. He muffed it but that might have happened to the best 1B. I think that if Felipe would have broken toward first as soon as the ball was hit the play could have been made to get the out. Instead it was a close safe at first and the inning continued.
As for the play in the 9th last nite. That ball was a bullet coming at him. He muffed it but that might have happened to the best 1B. I think that if Felipe would have broken toward first as soon as the ball was hit the play could have been made to get the out. Instead it was a close safe at first and the inning continued.