BRADENTON, Fla. -- Gregory Polanco finally accepted his arm was not going to get better in 2019 once the weather started getting warmer.
Coming off a major surgery -- and his first surgery of any kind -- he didn't know what to expect while getting ready for the start of last season. He hoped the lingering pain in his left shoulder was a product of the colder weather, and that he would feel better as the temperature rose.
As the season progressed, it became clear that it wasn't cool Pittsburgh spring nights that were causing the pain. He wasn't fully healthy and had rushed back too soon. His season came to a close in June after just 42 games.
It took three platelet plasma shots to his left shoulder, rehab and most importantly, time, but Polanco is back in the Pirates' camp. 17 months removed from the slide that made the surgery necessary, he feels "way better" than he did at this time last year.
"Way better."
Now he's ready to return to the field and put in a full season.
"That's my main goal right now, just to play," Polanco told reporters at his locker Saturday. " ... I just want to stay healthy and play 150, 140 games."
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