After Wednesday’s news that Jorge Polanco was placed back on the injured list, it is safe to say Year 1 of his tenure was a failure.
To be honest, describing it as a failure is an understatement.
Some other descriptions could be a fiasco, trainwreck, or debacle.
Like Luis Robert Jr., the Mets knew the risks in acquiring Polanco because of his inconsistency from season to season and injury history.
For example, Polanco’s 2019, 2021, and 2025 seasons significantly differed from his 2022-2024 seasons.
His 2022-24 stats were mediocre, as he played in only 302 games while hitting an underwhelming .232 with 46 HR, 149 RBI, and a .724 OPS.
He missed about 38% of games during this stretch due to various injuries, including ankle, leg, hamstring, and knee issues.
On the other hand, he was a much better and healthier player in 2019, 2021, and 2025, as he hit .275 with 81 HR, 255 RBI, and a .830 OPS.
More notably, he only missed 9% of games during these three seasons, which proves that he is capable of being a slugger in a strong offense.
When David Stearns and the Mets signed him, he was viewed as a replacement for Pete Alonso at first base and a hitter who would bat behind Juan Soto in the team’s lineup.
This was extremely risky defensively, as Polanco had extensive experience at shortstop (500+ games) and second base (400+ games), but only one inning at first base.
Early into the season, it quickly became apparent that he was playing through some kind of injury, as he received multiple days off at a time and his mechanics looked off.
On April 15, Polanco was placed on the injured list due to a right wrist contusion while also battling ankle soreness that limited his fielding.
Due to the lingering ankle soreness, it eventually progressed to left ankle bursitis, which led the team to shut down several minor league assignments before his pain tolerance increased.
After a few months, he returned on July 7, but it was clear that he still wasn’t 100% healthy.
In 23 games after his return, Polanco’s slash line was .127/.169/.190 with 1 HR and 3 RBI.
It got to the point where fans rooted for him to even get a hit or draw a walk.
Because of his injuries, Polanco was strictly a DH during this stretch, which led to Jared Young emerging as the everyday first baseman.
Unfortunately, an MRI revealed that Polanco’s ankle showed no improvement, which meant that he needed season-ending surgery.
As a whole, Polanco hit an abysmal .148 with 2 HR, 6 RBI, and a .431 OPS while only playing in 38 games.
To be honest, it makes zero sense why the Mets decided to play Polanco through the pain instead of encouraging him to undergo surgery in early April.
If he had gotten surgery, the recovery time would have been around 3-4 months, barring any setbacks, which would have set Polanco up for a July-August return.
The only good news about this is that there is no way Polanco is this bad next season, barring another injury or setback.
Unfortunately, Year 1 of Polanco’s two-year, $40M contract was a disaster.
My name is John Pagnotta and I live in Queens, NY. I am a freshman at St. John’s University and I am majoring in journalism. I am a huge fan of the Jets, Mets, Islanders, and Knicks. I started following sports when I was around 7 years old and I have not lost love for it ever since!
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