The Seattle Mariners have taken a 2-0 series lead over the Toronto Blue Jays in the ALCS. A major reason has been Jorge Polanco, but one teammate had admitted, he used to “hate” that guy.
“Throughout the years, I hated going to Minnesota just solely because of him. The guy single-handedly beat us so many times. We all know the type of player he is when he is healthy, and it's clearly showing right now,” teammate J.P. Crawford told the media after the game, according to ESPN.
Polanco has been on a roll this postseason, now in his second season with the Mariners. He is hitting .258 in the postseason with a .303 on-base percentage. Further, the second baseman has three home runs and eight RBIs in the playoffs. In the ALCS, he has gone 4-9 with a home run, five RBIs, and two runs scored. Further, he has driven in what proved to be the game-winning run in each of the last three games for the Mariners.
This is resulting in Polanco earning plenty of praise from his teammates and coaches. He has been called George Bonds and Iceman, due to his love for Top Gun.
“He's always been a great hitter. His swing right now is very short. That ball tonight, I wasn't sure it was going to go out of the ballpark, but I think he's just getting that kind of spin on it right now where it stays up,” manager Dan Wilson said of Polanco.
Polanco broke into the majors in 2014 with the Minnesota Twins. He played just five games that season, but by 2017 was a major part of the team's success. He served a suspension for PED use with the Twins, and also changed from shortstop to second base. Still, he was a constant producer for the team.
The former all-star was traded from Minnesota to Seattle in the winter before the 2024 season. Meanwhile, Crawford is the longest tenured Mariner. He joined the team in 2019 and had to face Polanco when he was a member of the Twins.
While Crawford hated playing against Polacno in the past, he has to love the output now. If the two of them can keep up their production, the Mariners can get rid of the title of the only team in the majors to never appear in the World Series.
