A.J. Pollock, D-backs secret weapon
By Tim Haberin
A.J. Pollock did not enter this year to many expectations or much fanfare. Yet it seems with each passing day he is making it his mission to ensure more and more in the baseball community are aware of his name. The 27-year-old Arizona Diamondbacks outfielder has turned in a fine performance throughout the first several weeks of the 2015 season, capped off by a starring role in last night’s 6-1 win over the Marlins.
Pollock went 3-for-4 with four runs scored out of the second spot in the lineup. He tore up the base paths as well, swiping three bases on the evening. Even more impressively, those thefts were of second, third and home plate, making him the first player in Diamondbacks history to accomplish that feat in one game. It was the second impact performance in as many nights for Pollock, who broke a deadlock in Tuesday’s game by clubbing an eighth inning pinch-hit two-run homer.
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Pollock’s heroics have helped the Diamondbacks put together a modest yet important three game winning streak. After dropping four in a row to the Nationals and Phillies, the D-backs have taken the first three contests in their present series in Miami. Every little bit counts for a team that has not been over .500 in nearly a month. Arizona now sits just three games below that plateau.
After three seasons of fluctuating playing time, A.J. Pollock is using his fourth to put it all together and prove he belongs. Through 38 games he has posted a 298/.346/.418 batting line, along with four home runs and 15 RBI. Last night’s three stolen bases bumped him up to a total of nine on the season. It’s a welcome sight after Pollock showed flashes of his abilities in 2014. He put up an .851 OPS in 75 games last year. Arizona now figures to see and benefit from that talent on a regular basis.
Pollock has tended toward streakiness in 2015, but his hot stretches have been impressive ones. Hitting .250 on April 15, Pollock went on a tear the rest of the month, raising his average .070 points by batting .362 over 12 games. He has cooled off a bit in the month of May, hitting .273 in 17 games. Pollock has, however, flexed his power muscles a bit more in that span: three of his four round-trippers have come within the last two weeks.
So what has been the key to Pollock’s early success this year? A look at Fangraphs shows he is hitting the ball the opposite way considerably more in 2015. His pull percentage is down to 27.6% from last season’s 41.8%. Meanwhile, the opposite field percentage has jumped from 18.6% to 31%. In the batter-friendly confines of Chase Field, hitting the ball to all fields should continue to serve Pollock well.
Pollock has formed an intriguing tandem at the top of the D-backs lineup with fellow outfielder Ender Inciarte. Inciarte is another player who appears to be turning a corner this season. The 24-year-old has been surprisingly productive out of the leadoff spot, hitting .299 with 24 runs scored and five steals. He and Pollock could provide a dynamic element to the Arizona lineup this season and beyond. And who wouldn’t want to set the table for Paul Goldschmidt?
His three-hit, three-steal night is a nearly perfect encapsulation of what A.J. Pollock can do in all aspects of the game. That brand of heads-up, hustle-fueled baseball bodes well for Pollock as an individual and his club as a whole. Though the D-backs certainly aren’t the most attractive pick in the NL West, they currently boast a +12 run differential and are four games out of a Wild Card spot. If they make an unlikely playoff push this season, it’s a safe bet Pollock will play a vital role. Arizona’s “secret weapon” might be far less of a secret by year’s end.