The Mets brought in Jorge Polanco to give them a nice piece they could potentially bounce around the infield.
The veteran is expected to see a ton of time at first and DH this season, though.
Polanco has appeared in just one big league game at the position, but he does have some recent experience there.
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According to Will Sammon of The Athletic, he worked with Mariners infield coach Perry Hill and others on the staff for over two months in mid-June for a potential transition this past season.
Hill told Sammon that those lessons included how to hold a runner on, how to get to the base without being stepped on, how to throw to second, and how to get back to the bag on a snap throw from the catcher.
Those skills were never brought into game action, though, as Seattle ended up with a bigger need at second, so Polanco spent the majority of his time there down the stretch.
Once he gets down to Port St. Lucie, he figures to be able to put them to the test.
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Hill expects that there are still some things to work on and old habits the middle infielder will need to break, but he did tell Sammon that Polanco is an “A-plus person” and always showed up ready to work.
The 32-year-old will try to help fill the huge void left behind with Pete Alonso’s departure to the Orioles.
