Hurdle confident in Polanco’s ‘thirst’ to improve

CINCINNATI — After a strong first half, Gregory Polanco has cooled considerably at the plate.

A popular breakout pick before the season, Polanco delivered on his immense potential this season by hitting .287/.362/.500 with 12 homers and 50 RBIs in his first 82 games. He shortened up his swing and smashed the ball to all fields, scorching line drives at a higher rate than ever before.

But the league has pushed back against Polanco, who entered Friday batting .227/.273/.449 in the second half. He is still hitting for power, crushing nine homers to go along with 10 doubles and two triples in his last 50 games. But he has not walked as often, nor has he hit the ball as hard as he did over the first few months of the season.

What changed?

“They’re not throwing him the same pitches,” manager Clint Hurdle said. “He’s shown the ability to hit certain pitches. In this tech industry that we work in right now, you’re not going to keep getting pitches you splatter. You’re just not going to. And you have enough talent up here for pitchers to stay out of those zones.”

One interesting aspect of Polanco’s slump is the dramatic swing in his …

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