Notes: Steals for Hayes; Polanco staying

PITTSBURGH -- Could Ke'Bryan Hayes become a speed threat for the Pirates? It might be in the works.

Hayes has always been able to run well. The 24-year-old has an above-average 27.8 feet per second sprint speed and is one of only six third basemen in MLB to record a bolt, which is a run tracked at a 30 feet per second sprint speed or higher -- considered “elite” by Statcast.

But after a left wrist injury sent him to the 60-day injured list, Hayes didn’t want to test his wrist with slides into second when he was still trying to gain confidence in it simply by being able to power an aggressive swing.

“I typically like to slide headfirst whenever I steal, so that was why I kind of, in the back of my mind, I kind of didn't want to hurt anything with that,” Hayes said. “But yeah, just finding the right time to go, the right counts to go, stuff like that.”

Hayes stole two bases in his first 61 games off the injured list, but he’s swiped two in his past eight games, including one with two outs in Monday’s 6-5 win. Though he wasn’t driven in by Colin Moran, as part of a lineup that has had some rough patches throughout the season, Hayes’ ability to swipe bags on a team that is tied for the fifth-fewest stolen bases in the Majors (39 in 125 games) could prove productive.

It’s an area of growth that manager Derek Shelton said could be tested more and more on as the season winds down, with Hayes at full health.

“It’s still something we’re continuing [to focus on] in his development,” Shelton said. “His jumps, his reads -- it’s something that [first-base coach] Tarrik [Brock] is definitely talking to him about. But I definitely think it’s something that he’s going to be able to add to his arsenal.”

Polanco clears waivers (source)

The longest-tenured Pirate will remain a Pirate.

A source told MLB.com that Gregory Polanco, who was placed on outright waivers on Sunday, cleared waivers and will remain on the active roster.

The waiver process for a player with an MLB tenure the length of Polanco's is trickier than the typical moves for younger players. If not claimed off waivers, the outfielder could either go on release waivers, accept or -- given his six-plus years of service time -- reject an assignment to Triple-A or elect free agency.

The path forward from the outset of the waiver placement was that Polanco would either be claimed by a contending club -- most likely for his raw power (top 3% of MLB in maximum exit velocity at 116.2 mph) and ability to swipe bases (a team-high 14 stolen bases to one caught stealing) -- or he would continue to be an active member of the Pirates.

The 29-year-old has struggled to consistently produce, batting .197 with 11 homers in 103 games this season, but he is one of the most loved players in Pittsburgh’s increasingly young clubhouse.