7 years agoPittsburgh Pirates outfielder Gregory Polanco went 2-for-3 with a double and a walk in a loss to the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday night. It was a much-needed performance for the 26-year-old, who had been mired in a slump since his two-homer game a week ago. Since April 13, Polanco was just 1-for-23 with a walk at the plate, erasing a hot start to drag his slash line down to .185/.299/.477. Still, there are plenty of encouraging signs for Polanco, who owns a promising 14.6 percent walk rate and has slugged five home runs to this point. The power seems legitimate, as well, thanks to an above-average 37.5 percent hard-contact rate coming into Friday's contest. Although he's seen an uptick in whiffs (23.2 percent strikeout rate), the quality of contact should mean better times to come for Polanco.--Matt Wilkes
Source: MLB.com