3 Reasons It’s Time to Stash Gregory Polanco – Fantasy Baseball

If you want to win your fantasy league(s), you absolutely have to grab somebody that will produce beyond their expected value. I’ve never won my league without guessing right on a guy outperforming his value. Prospects are harder to predict because we haven’t seen them face MLB talent, but we don’t want to miss out on the next Trout or Puig.

If you’re in a 12-team mixed league or deeper and have more than three bench spots, here are three reasons you should stash Gregory Polanco.

Gregory Polanco lurks behind Victory Field walls

1. Polanco is crushing minor league pitching.

Through 17 games, Polanco is slashing a gaudy .406/.446/.609 in AAA for the Indianapolis Indians. With a 6’4”, 220 lb frame he can hit for power, but more impressive is his knack for stealing bases, swiping 78 the last two years. Last year he struck out just once every six at bats, respectable for a guy who can crank it. This year his offensive prowess has been off the charts, hitting for incredible average against both lefties and righties, and .550 with runners in scoring position to put icing on the cake. Bring ‘em on home!

2. The outfield platoon of Tabata/Snider isn’t working.

Jose Tabata has given the Bucs nothing, slashing a putrid .222/.271/.267. In 19 games he’s scored 4 runs and driven in 4. That’s it. No steals or homers, the latter of which isn’t a surprise, but he came up in the Pirates’ system with a threat of speed. After averaging 17.5 steals his first two seasons, he managed just 3 stolen bases in 4 attempts in 106 games last year. Yawn.

Travis Snider, the other side of Jekyll and Hyde, cannot and will not hit lefties, and has hit a pedestrian .250 in 18 games. We all know what we’re getting with Snider… and it’s not much, other than his perfect fielding percentage, tops in the NL. If only fielding percentage mattered in fantasy...

Tabata has more upside with his speed and could probably benefit from regular at bats, but it appears the Bucs are treating this as a true platoon for the time being.

3. The Pirates are under .500, 6 games back in the NL Central.

The Pirates are 20 games into the young season – and yes, it’s early – but they trail the NL Central- and MLB-leading Brewers and sit in a competitive division (STL, CIN, MIL). Sorry, Cubs.

Pittsburgh is hitting just .238 as a team and could use a boost to say the least. No longer in rebuild mode, there is no time to waste. In the past, the club didn’t bring up previous talents (Andrew McCutchen in 2009) because there wasn’t a need and they simply weren’t in contention. Polanco would fill an immediate need in the outfield with a power/speed combo similar to that of George Springer, who finally got the call for the Astros this year.