SEATTLE — He’s been the Mariners’ X-factor all year, with sneaky slug potential and has seemingly been right in the thick of things when their offense plays to its ceiling.
Seattle’s second baseman hit two huge homers off all-world ace Tarik Skubal that gave the Mariners’ pitching staff cushion to operate in a tense showdown that ended in a 3-2 victory for the Mariners to even the series.
Polanco became just the fourth player — and first since 2021 — to homer twice in the same game vs. Skubal, who’s the front-runner to win his second straight AL Cy Young Award and is widely regarded as the best pitcher on the planet.
In the third, he scooped a one-hopper directly in front of him for the second out to help Luis Castillo go toe-to-toe with Skubal. Then in the fifth, he corralled a grounder to his right and flipped it to shortstop J.P. Crawford for the force at second base and the second out. That set up the tensest at-bat of the night, when Gabe Speier relieved Castillo and shut down Kerry Carpenter — Detroit’s hero from Game 1 — to strand runners on the corners.
This season has represented a resounding rebound for Polanco, who nearly one year ago to the day had just undergone surgery to repair the patellar tendon in his left knee — an injury that he played through for virtually all of 2024, and one that significantly impacted his production. He posted career-worsts in batting average (.213), on-base percentage (.296) and OPS (.654).
The Mariners knew better than anyone about the limitations he faced in ‘24, which is why they were comfortable bringing him back in free agency on a one-year, $7 million contract that included a $750,000 buyout. That deal also included a vesting player option for 2026, which he achieved last month by accumulating 450 plate appearances — an incentive tied to his health — and which he can now exercise for $6 million.
Given his production this season, however, it’s possible that Polanco instead attempts to test the open market for a more lucrative deal this winter — but he still has plenty left to play for, springboarded by the biggest night of his Mariners career.