Hanwha Eagles foreign hitter Brian O’Grady eventually went down to Seosan. Will he be kicked out like foreign pitcher Birch Smith, or will he make a big turnaround?
O’Grady came to the KBO league after playing in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) last year. Although his batting average was low at .213, he hit 15 home runs. He was tied for seventh in the Pacific League in home runs, and his on-base percentage of 0.312 wasn’t bad. He was a hitter who could hit a long enough room.
However, the sluggishness at the beginning of the season is not serious. O’Grady’s season record is a batting average of 0.127 (8 hits in 63 at-bats), 8 RBIs, 3 runs, an on-base percentage of 0.176, a slugging percentage of 0.159, and an OPS of 0.335. Last in hitting
There is no home run expected from a foreign hitter. He has 4 walks and 31 strikeouts, making him the king of strikeouts. Looking at his pace alone, he would have 279 strikeouts.
He can hardly make an in-play batting ball. No hits in the last 6 games. The last hit was a double with two RBIs made in the first at-bat in the first inning against KT on the 15th. Afterwards, he picked off two walks, but withdrew from the rest of the plate with a strikeout and an outfield float.
16th against KT, 4 at bats, 3 strikeouts, 18th, against Doosan, 4 at bats, 4 strikeouts, 19th, against Doosan, 3 at bats, 2 strikeouts, 1 walk, 20th against Doosan, 2 at bats, 1 strikeout, 21st, against LG, 1 at bat, 1 strikeout, 22nd, against LG, 3 at bats 2 strikeouts It is a streak of 19 consecutive at-bats in 22 at-bats.
O’Grady has been working hard to escape from sluggishness, such as making special hits alone. But maybe it was because he was overdoing it. There was also a game where he couldn’t start because of back pain.
In the end, Hanwha drew her sword. O’Grady went down to the second team ahead of the game on the 23rd.
Hanwha coach Carlos Subero said, “Today, O’Grady was sent to Seosan (2nd team). Rather than looking for a sense of hitting in the 2nd team, I asked him to think about what he liked and come back. He is a player who will add atmosphere to the other line. I hope you will find the image of ‘.”
There are example examples. It is Darin Rough, a former foreign hitter for Samsung. Ruff, who joined Samsung in the 2017 season, struggled with sluggishness at the start of the season. At the time, he only had a batting average of 0.150 in his opening 18 games.
But after going to the 2nd team, I became a completely different hitter. He returned 10 days later and emerged as a hero on the first day of his return on May 2, hitting multiple hits including a walk-off home run. He posted a batting average of 0.336 (153 hits in 455 at-bats), 29 home runs, and 119 RBIs with an OPS of 1.020 in 116 games after the call-up. 스포츠토토
Ruff played through 2019 and returned to the majors after the season.
There is no way that O’Grady is as bad as Rough. The club may return to what it expects.
However, for Hanwha, if there is still no rebound after returning, it is time to consider a replacement card. Sending another foreign player is a burden when foreign pitcher Birch Smith has already been kicked out.
Coach Subero said, “I don’t know. But if you can’t do it, finding a better player is a foreign player’s unavoidable reality.” I will help you well,” he said cautiously.