SAN FRANCISCO -- The Mariners were without their hottest-swinging bat for the second straight game on Sunday, as third baseman Jorge Polanco was out of Seattle¡¯s starting lineup again due to soreness in his surgically-repaired left knee.
The club was hopeful that Polanco sitting out Saturday night¡¯s game ahead of a quick turnaround for the series finale vs. the Giants would be enough time for rest and recovery, but it wasn't to be. The last man left on the Seattle bench, Polanco ended up being forced into action to play first base in the bottom of the ninth when Victor Robles left the game after suffering an injury. He was on the field for one pitch, which Wilmer Flores hit for a walk-off single in the Mariners' 5-4 loss.
¡°We're going to give him another day then reassess,¡± Mariners manager Dan Wilson said.
The Mariners are considering whether Polanco might be more well-suited at designated hitter in the long term if he continues to experience soreness. That spot has mostly been occupied between Rowdy Tellez and Luke Raley, who¡¯ve been splitting time at first base, and catchers Cal Raleigh and Mitch Garver when they¡¯re not behind the plate.
¡°We're looking at everything, just to kind of see where we're at with it all,¡± Wilson said. ¡°That is a fair question, and we'll just kind of assess as we go whether the defense adds more stress or not. It's hard to tell. But yeah, we're just kind of trying to assess it as we go.¡±
Polanco, who underwent surgery in October to repair the patellar tendon in his left knee, is off to a 9-for-20 (.450) start at the plate with two homers, eight RBIs, one walk and three strikeouts, good for a 1.226 OPS.
He missed last Sunday¡¯s matinee against the A¡¯s for scheduled rest, then went on the paternity list for the games on Tuesday and Wednesday vs. the Tigers when his wife went into labor for the birth of their fourth child. In total, Polanco has started five of the Mariners¡¯ 10 games.
¡°We're just kind of taking it each day as we go, and we'll see how it proceeds,¡± Wilson said. ¡°But right now, it's just [that] today is just one more day, and then we'll go from there.¡±
Polanco has made a pronounced adjustment to his batting stance from the left side to a much more closed setup with his legs -- and to great results -- as MLB.com¡¯s Mike Petriello outlined recently. The switch-hitter indicated that doing so was related to the soreness.
¡°I changed it because of my knee,¡± Polanco said Saturday.
Polanco was eased into action in Spring Training in large part due to the knee, which necessitated the procedure after prolonged pain that he played through for much of the second half last season. Polanco wasn¡¯t installed into Cactus League play until March 3 and served as Seattle¡¯s designated hitter for his first three games before playing third base for the first of eight games there on March 8.
The knee was also a large part why he struggled at the plate in his first season in Seattle, with career lows in batting average (.213), on-base percentage (.296) and OPS (.651).
¡°It was tough to play through that kind of pain,¡± Polanco said in spring, ¡°but I wish I was able to manage the pain with the help of the [athletic] trainers. They did a really good job of keeping me on the field.¡±
Polanco¡¯s turnaround has been one of the Mariners¡¯ most encouraging developments within their 3-6 start, after he rejoined the Mariners on a one-year, $7 million deal in January that includes a $750,000 buyout and vesting player option. The club brought him back to change positions from second base to third with hopes that it would be less demanding.
¡°We knew going in that we were going to have to be a little cautious,¡± Wilson said. ¡°So we're just going to give them a little bit more rest today and then see where we¡¯re at tomorrow.¡±
In Polanco¡¯s stead, Dylan Moore -- who homered off Robbie Ray on Saturday -- made his second straight start at third base.