Correa to Face Adjustment with Polanco

Minnesota moved Polanco off of shortstop for good last season. He responded by posting an .826 OPS and played in 152 games. After grading out negatively in all of his seasons at shortstop, Polanco posted three defensive runs saved (DRS) at his new position. For the first time in his career, the Twins infielder showed defense as an asset.
 
Looking into Statcast’s outs above average (OAA), Polanco is seen a bit below average. His -1 OAA is noted as being reflective of a struggle going up the middle. Being worth -5 OAA when moving laterally towards third base, Polanco is seen as stretched when dealing with range efforts. That compares interestingly to his OAA as a shortstop. Polanco’s worst season analytically was 2019, and his -22 OAA that season was primarily influenced by a -11 number when coming in on the ball. What bodes well for both Polanco and Minnesota is the new guy standing towards the third base direction of him.

While Gold Gloves can sometimes be awarded to players based on offensive acumen, there was no mistake when rewarding Correa last season. He posted an exceptionally strong 20 DRS and checked in with an equally impressive 12 OAA. When breaking down his output, the production came almost entirely from coming in and moving towards third base. That makes a good deal of sense, considering a need to show range in the hole. Good shortstops often brandish a big arm and put it on display when throwing well off their position. How things change as the two are married will be interesting.
 
Looking back at what Correa has come from, Jose Altuve grades out well defensively but struggles to go the opposite direction. Last season Altuve posted five OAA for the Astros, but his eight OAA coming in was drug down by a -4 mark when moving towards first base. It's obviously straightforward that players display strengths differently. OAA is also somewhat reflective of positioning and opportunity. Both Houston and Minnesota shift while being invested in analytics, but not all numbers will be utilized in the same fashion across organizations.
 
There’s no denying that having a defensive wizard at shortstop will help Polanco. That was the case last season as the Twins employed Andrelton Simmons. The former Angels shortstop experienced differing double-play partners in that Los Angeles had second base in flux while Simmons had also switched organizations previously. I’d expect a talent like Correa would seamlessly acclimate to a new situation even with some uncertainty.
 
During his press conference, Correa talked at length about his level of comfort with the Twins organization, which will need to extend on the field. Previously, he hasn’t shared the same jersey with Polanco, but both spent over 100 games in 2013 as teenagers in the Midwest League. Competing against each other and then passing conversation as big-league opponents brings a level of familiarity. The next piece of the puzzle is ratcheting that up to benefit each other professionally.

Maybe this winds up being a one-year deal after all, but the success of that one year will be as much determined by the relationship with his new infield partner as it will offensive production and the ultimate win-loss record.

We’ve seen growing pains from new teammates before, and few positions are more critical than shortstop. How much do you think Correa’s presence helps Polanco, and do you expect a smooth insertion onto the dirt?

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