Jorge Polanco, with 1 pitch of first base experience, willing to make move for New York Mets

NEW YORK (AP) — Jorge Polanco's experience at first base consists of one pitch, when San Francisco's Wilmer Flores lined a sinker off the end of his bat toward right field in the ninth inning of a tied game last April 6.

“It's just like they always say, whenever you come into the game, the ball always finds you," Polanco recalled through a translator on Monday. "When the ball was hit, I thought it was coming straight to me."

Flores' hit was way too far toward second for Polanco to have a chance at it, giving San Francisco a walk-off win over Seattle.

First base figures to be Polanco's primary position next year as Pete Alonso's replacement following Polanco's decision to sign a $40 million, two-year contract with the New York Mets.

“I was offering my services to teams as a first baseman, second baseman, third baseman, so when the Mets asked if I was able to do that, play a little bit of first, play a little bit third, I was definitely willing to do that,” Polanco said on a Zoom news conference.

Alonso, a fan favorite and a five-time All-Star, left the Mets as a free agent for a $155 million, five-year contract with Baltimore.

Asked whether he expects first base will be his primary position, Polanco responded: “I would think so. ... They told me that I’d be playing a good amount of first base, but that I could also be bouncing around.”

A 32-year-old switch-hitter who has batted .260 against righties and .270 against lefties, Polanco was an All-Star with Minnesota in 2019 and set career bests two years later when he had 33 homers and 98 RBIs for the Twins.

He was primarily a shortstop through 2020 and then a second baseman from 2020-24. Last season, he started mostly at designated hitter for the Mariners, who came within one win of their first World Series trip.

Mariners bench coach Manny Acta and infield coach Perry Hill approached Polanco this year about preparing for time at first.

“It was very easy because I had already spoken to my agent about starting to work out at first and trying to become a more versatile baseball player,” Polanco said. “So when we approached them, they were essentially approaching us at the same time. So it was real easy and a really seamless transition.”

Polanco hit .265 with 26 home runs, 78 RBIs, 30 doubles and an .821 OPS in 138 games for Seattle last season, his second with the Mariners following a decade with Minnesota.

While he didn't get to start at first, he found work with the coaches invaluable.

“The biggest difference is the position that you get in to receive pickoffs,” he said. “That was the toughest transition for me because it’s very different from when you’re playing in the middle of the infield. But I think with my experience of playing second, short, third, it allows me to be an athlete and I think that my athleticism will help me while I’m playing first base.”

Hours after Polanco spoke with reporters, the Mets announced their deal with reliever Luke Weaver. The former New York Yankees right-hander agreed to a $22 million, two-year contract last week, subject to a successful physical.

“Over the past few seasons Luke has emerged as one of the most reliable leverage relievers in baseball and we’re excited to add him to our (bullpen),” Mets President of Baseball Operations David Stearns said in a news release. “Luke’s stuff, combined with his experience in high pressure situations in New York, sets him up well for success going forward.”

Weaver gets a $3 million signing bonus, payable upon the contract’s approval by Major League Baseball, and salaries of $8 million next year and $11 million in 2027.

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

FILE - New York Yankees' Luke Weaver pitches during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Minnesota Twins Monday, Aug. 11, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II, File)

FILE - Seattle Mariners' Jorge Polanco walks to the dugout after a fly out against the Toronto Blue Jays during the fourth inning in Game 4 of baseball's American League Championship Series, in Seattle, Oct. 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson, File)

FILE - Seattle Mariners' Jorge Polanco reacts after hitting the game-winning RBI-single for J.P. Crawford to score during the 15th inning in Game 5 of baseball's American League Division Series against the Detroit Tigers, Friday, Oct. 10, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson, File)

FILE - Seattle Mariners' Jorge Polanco runs on his two-RBI double against the Los Angeles Angels during the first inning of a baseball game Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer, File)

FILE - Seattle Mariners' Jorge Polanco hits a solo home run off Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Tarik Skubal during the sixth inning in Game 2 of baseball's American League Division Series, Sunday, Oct. 5, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) — The funding lapse for the Department of Homeland Security will likely stretch into next week as the House contemplates passing a Senate plan it had previously rejected to fund the bulk of the agency, but not its immigration enforcement operations.

There was no resolution Thursday to the standoff, now in its 48th day, after both chambers met for just a few minutes in pro forma sessions. Nonetheless, the Republican leadership and President Donald Trump have coalesced around a plan to fully fund DHS as part of a two-step process. The agreement puts the congressional leaders on the same page for ending the impasse after they had pursued separate paths that resulted in Congress leaving Washington last week for its spring recess without a fix.

During the brief sessions, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., put aside the House plan to fund the entire department for 60 days. Then the House met briefly without taking up the bipartisan Senate plan that had been worked out with Democrats, though Thune is looking toward eventual passage.

“I don’t know the particulars around what the House will do with it,” Thune told reporters. “My assumption is, at some point, hopefully, they’ll move it.”

Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and Thune, announced Wednesday that they would return to the Senate measure, which funds most of DHS with the exception of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Border Patrol. Republicans will try later to fund those agencies through party-line spending legislation that could take months to finish.

Neither outcome is guaranteed, and the strategy could potentially still face opposition from the GOP’s own ranks even though Trump has given his support.

Johnson’s embrace of the two-track plan marks a sharp reversal from less than a week ago, when he derided it as a “joke” and said he was “quite convinced that it can’t be that every Senate Republican read the language of this bill.”

He now appears to be on board. But securing support from his own conference could prove more difficult after a sizable group of House Republicans blasted the Senate-passed bill last week.

House Republicans were expected to hold a conference call later Thursday to discuss the next steps.

Thune pointed to a “number of conversations” when he was asked how the Republican leadership and Trump aligned to move ahead after their apparent divisions a week earlier.

“The thing that some people want to do, we can’t do,” said Thune. “And so you have to figure out what’s in the realm of the possible. And you have to just continue to define reality for people.”

Democrats in both chambers were aligned last week with the Senate funding plan passed with bipartisan support. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York on Wednesday blamed Republicans for not acting more quickly.

“Republican divisions derailed a bipartisan agreement, making American families pay the price for their dysfunction,” Schumer said.

Even with the progress, the most conservative lawmakers are likely to seek full funding for all of Trump’s immigration and deportation operations.

“Let’s make this simple: caving to Democrats and not paying CBP and ICE is agreeing to defund Law Enforcement and leaving our borders wide open again,” Rep. Scott Perry, R-Pa., posted on X. “If that’s the vote, I’m a NO.”

Meanwhile, the budget package that Trump wants prepared for later this year is expected to fund ICE and Border Patrol through the remainder of Trump’s term, as a way to try to ensure those agencies are no longer at risk from Democrats objecting to his immigration enforcement agenda. Trump said he wants that legislation on his desk by June 1.

Thune acknowledged the potential hurdles to that route, such as efforts to expand the scope of the bill. He said the goal is to keep it “as narrow and focused as possible” to speed passage.

“We need to kind of move with haste,” he said. “It’s probably not a likely magnet for all these other issues.”

The vast majority of DHS employees have reported to work during the shutdown, but many thousands have gone without pay. As more Transportation Security Administration agents called out from work, there was increasing frustration for air travelers confronted by long waits at some airport security lines. Those bottlenecks appeared to be clearing this week as agents began receiving backpay after Trump signed an executive order.

AP Congressional Correspondent Lisa Mascaro contributed to this report.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., speaks to reporters outside the chamber after passing a measure by unanimous consent that would fund most of the Department of Homeland Security, if the House agrees, at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, April 2, 2026. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., gestures as he speaks to reporters outside the chamber after passing a a measure by unanimous consent that would fund most of the Department of Homeland Security if the House agrees, at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, April 2, 2026. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Sen. Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., speaks during a news conference after a policy luncheon on Capitol Hill,Tuesday, March 24, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib)

Sen. Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., speaks during a news conference after a policy luncheon on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, March 24, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib)

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill, Friday, March 27, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib)