Now that the Pittsburgh Pirates have traded two-thirds of the so-called Dream Outfield, we finally can wake up to this reality: It was more of a fantasy.

The idea of fielding an outfield of All-Stars Andrew McCutchen, Starling Marte and Gregory Polanco in the same fashion as the early 1990s Bucs of Barry Bonds, Bobby Bonilla and Andy Van Slyke never lived up to expectations.

They essentially had three solid seasons together, then went their separate ways. The Pirates dealt five-time All-Star, 2012 Gold Glove winner and ‘13 NL MVP McCutchen to San Francisco in January 2018. Now, two years later, they sent two-time Gold Glove winner and 2016 All-Star Marte to Arizona.

That leaves only the 28-year-old Polanco, who has neither an All-Star appearance nor a Gold Glove on his six-year MLB resume but remains on the right side of 30 for one more season.

Polanco has the dubious distinction of being the Pirates’ highest-paid position player, at a salary of $8.6 million this season and $11.6 million in 2021, with club options at $12.5 million in 2022 ($3 million buyout) and $13.5 million in ’23 ($1 million buyout).

That almost assures Polanco soon will follow McCutchen and Marte onto the trading block, which might have happened already if not for the left shoulder that required surgery in September 2018 and limited Polanco to 42 games last season. Marte brought back only a pair of 19-year-old prospects, so you can imagine what Polanco would fetch. Not much.

The Pirates’ best bet is to play Polanco and hope he not only outperforms his contract but replaces Marte’s production. Where Marte slashed .295/.342/.503 with 23 home runs and 82 RBIs last season, leading the Pirates with 97 runs and 25 stolen bases, Polanco twice has produced 20-plus homers and 80-plus RBIs.

Problem is, Polanco never has batted higher than .258, never scored more than 83 runs and has stolen more than 17 bases only once. So he’s no Marte. But Polanco still can provide some much-needed pop in the middle of the batting order.

“I think he means a ton to that lineup,” Pirates manager Derek Shelton said Friday, even though he wouldn’t commit to Polanco batting fifth. “I definitely think when you add a guy of his caliber to your lineup, it gives you length.”

At 6-foot-5, 235 pounds, Polanco has plenty of length. His long swing and streaky hitting, however, have been a sore spot for the Pirates. That Polanco never lived up to the Sports Illustrated billing as baseball’s Next Big Thing — along with his misadventures in right field and on the basepaths — has frustrated fans.

General manager Ben Cherington said Polanco is “at 100% right now, from a basic health perspective” but added the Pirates could be cautious and bring him along “thoughtfully” in spring training. That’s something the Pirates should have done last season, when Polanco returned before his arm was ready only to re-aggravate the injury and shorten his season.

“Mostly, our focus has been on helping him feel good, feel supported, feel as strong as he can going into spring training and the season,” Cherington said. “The news has all been positive. He’s feeling good. We’re excited to see him in Bradenton. I’ve seen some video and things like that. But certainly he’s got the talent to be a really good player at the major league level and a really good player for the Pirates. We’re going to work as hard as we can to support him in doing that.”

In return, Polanco could provide support and much-needed protection behind All-Star first baseman Josh Bell in the batting order. Bell hit 37 home runs and had 116 RBIs last season, with mostly Colin Moran (51 games) and Melky Cabrera (41) hitting behind him as Polanco and Corey Dickerson combined to play only 86 games.

Bell said he hopes Polanco can hit 30-40 home runs this season, which seems like wishful thinking given he has hit only 78 career homers in 666 career major league games. But Polanco was in the midst of his best season when his awkward slide ended his 2018 season, so the Pirates remain optimistic.

“He’s constantly a threat,” Bell said of Polanco. “You’ve got to put the pressure back on the pitcher. I’m excited for wherever he hits. I don’t know where he’s going to get hit, but I’m excited to get him back in the lineup. He’s definitely going to be driving the ball all over the ballpark.”

The Pirates have to hold onto that hope for Polanco, for however long he is still here.

We now know better than to dare to dream he will be playing in their outfield for much longer.

Love baseball? Stay up-to-date with the latest Pittsburgh Pirates news.

Copyright ©2025— Trib Total Media, LLC (TribLIVE.com)