Oct. 4, 2017
Former Notre Dame baseball outfielder A.J. Pollock will become the latest Irish player to experience October baseball, as his Arizona Diamondbacks host the Colorado Rockies in the NL Wild Card Game on Wednesday, Oct. 4.
First pitch at Chase Field in Phoenix is set for 8 p.m. Eastern and the game can be seen on TBS.
Pollock has played in 112 games for Arizona this season, hitting .266 with a .330 on-base percentage and .464 slugging percentage. His 14 home runs and 49 RBI were both the second most in his six-year career, trailing only his 2015 All-Star campaign.
He has played a near flawless center field, committing just one error in 109 starts while putting up six outfield assists. Both his fielding percentage and assist total are better than the 2015 season which saw him win a Gold Glove.
Pollock played three seasons at Notre Dame (2007-09), before being selected by the Diamondbacks in the first round (17th overall) of the 2009 MLB Draft. He was a third team All-American in 2009 and a Freshman All-American in 2007. The three-time All-BIG EAST selection hit .363 for his career with 41 doubles, 10 triples, 17 homers, 122 RBI and 60 stolen bases.
He led the Irish in hitting all three years and owns the program record for stolen base percentage (minimum 35 steals) at .870 (60-for-69).
Should the Diamondbacks advance, they would open the National League Division Series in Los Angeles against the Dodgers on Friday, Oct. 6 (10:30 p.m. ET).