Comments on: Redbird recollection: Placido Polanco

By: springfieldcardinal

springfieldcardinal — Sun, 05 Aug 2007 00:42:16 +0000

How about a Dmitri Young Prospect Retro? It feels appropriate because we are playing the Nationals right now.

I remember watching some kind of feature before or during a Cardinals game about him when he was in St. Louis and they were showing him eating at the “Eat Rite” diner in downtown STL next to the stadium. That might explain why he looks like he couldn’t run a 40-yard dash.

Watching the game tonight, my wife just commented “you’d think a professional athlete could run from first base to the dugout to try to catch a pop fly without looking like he’s going to have a heart attack.”

Classic.

Perhaps you could also chart the evolution of his gut?

By: DavetheFalconer

DavetheFalconer — Sat, 04 Aug 2007 21:36:04 +0000

Awesome. Definitely picked a great player to start with; I couldn’t be unhappy that he was going the other way in the Rolen deal, but I always had a soft spot for Polanco. I look forward to seeing who’s up next.

But I’m barking mad about that pun.

By: Sunil

Sunil — Sat, 04 Aug 2007 19:46:40 +0000

I like this feature.

I remember when Placido first came up (it was concurrent with Luis Ordaz). For whatever reason, I had gotten it in my head that those two were the second coming of Ozzie and Oquendo. Needless to say, I was wrong.

By: houstoncardinal

houstoncardinal — Sat, 04 Aug 2007 18:09:57 +0000

Nice job. I was wondering if Hoffpaiur’s performance this year is mirroring Polanco’s. It’s interesting that Polanco was always looked at as a utility player but he just kept hitting and playing defense and turned himself into a good major-leaguer. I wonder if Hoffpauir might do the same.

By: Paul

Paul — Sat, 04 Aug 2007 17:22:40 +0000

It would seem that Solano shows the most versatility. Hopefully he can start hitting at AA next year

By: DJ87

DJ87 — Sat, 04 Aug 2007 17:17:14 +0000

The interesting thing about Polanco is despite no so hot numbers the Cards kept promoting him each year. If I read correctly he never repeated a level. Yet his stats improved (even if by just a little) each year at a higher level. That is pretty impressive to me. Maybe we should be searching out guys like that who don’t have great stats, but who have shown improvement year to year at a higher level. That seems like a recipe for success to me.

By: Lou Schuler

Lou Schuler — Sat, 04 Aug 2007 13:43:35 +0000

Sorry to be long-winded, but this reminded me of something I’ve noticed over the years when I’ve followed a prospect by box scores and stats, and then gotten a chance to see him in person or on TV when he reaches the majors.

It’s surprising how often what I see with my eyes doesn’t correlate with the impressions I’d formed from stats and box scores.

One example is Adam Kennedy. I’d thought I’d like him a lot as a ballplayer, but the first time I saw him on TV, I was surprised by his long swing. He seemed to have shortened it with the Angels, which I guess is why he had some success there.

Conversely, I had thought Chris Duncan would be an all-or-nothing, mistake-hitting brute. But I was surprised to see a smart, selective hitter. I don’t get to see many games on TV, and none in person the past two seasons, but when I watch Dunc’s at-bats, I see a lot more maturity and patience than I ever expected from looking at his minor-league numbers.

By: Lou Schuler

Lou Schuler — Sat, 04 Aug 2007 13:33:17 +0000

I had only the vaguest ideas about stats when I first saw Polanco play, but I remember thinking early on that he was a potentially special player.

I got a chance to see the Cardinals play the Tigers at Tiger Stadium in ‘99, its last season. We were sitting with some Tiger fans, exchanging observations on our teams’ players. When Polanco came up late in the game (deep memory, but I think he was a pinch hitter/defensive switch), I said to the Tiger fans, “Watch this guy, he always seems to make good contact.”

Right on cue, if memory serves, he hit a line-drive single over shortstop.

I also remember thinking that he looked like he had room in his frame to get stronger, and if he did those singles might turn into doubles or even homers.

The irony, if you want to call it that, is that I was right on all those observations, but it happened for the benefit of the Tigers, rather than the Cardinals.