Update (10:12 PM EST): Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports is reporting that the five years are worth $35 million. With the two option years, the total contract could be worth up to $60 million.
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The Pirates and outfielder Gregory Polanco have agreed to a five-year deal believed to be in the range of $30 million, Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports is reporting. The contract also includes two club options, potentially making it a seven-year deal. As Passan notes, Polanco previously turned down a seven-year contract offer from the Pirates in 2014.
Polanco’s new deal starts in 2017, so it will cover all three of his arbitration-eligible seasons plus one season during which he could have been eligible for free agency.
Polanco, 24, was rated the #10 overall prospect in baseball going into the 2014 season. He hasn’t quite lived up to the hype, carrying a .685 OPS over 964 plate appearances in the big leagues, but the Pirates are obviously quite confident he can continue to progress. Polanco showed improved ability during the second half last year, hitting .276/.324/.425 with six home runs, 29 RBI, 43 runs scored, and 10 stolen bases in 316 trips to the plate.
[graphiq id="bKFuehElPpj” title="Gregory Polanco 2015 Batting Splits By Pitcher Hand” width="640" height="523" url="https://w.graphiq.com/w/bKFuehElPpj” link="http://baseball-players.pointafter.com/l/18422/Gregory-Polanco” link_text="Gregory Polanco 2015 Batting Splits By Pitcher Hand | PointAfter”]
