For Brian O’Grady (31), a foreign hitter from Hanwha, the 17th was his 31st birthday. It was his first birthday in Korea, but unfortunately the circumstances surrounding him were not very good.

Prior to the game메이저사이트 against Lotte in Daejeon that day, O’Grady had a batting average of 102.2 (9 hits in 74 at-bats) in 20 games, no home runs, 8 RBIs, 5 walks, 5 walks, 36 strikeouts, an on-base percentage of .175, a slugging percentage of .162, and an OPS of .337. are missing A grade that would not be strange even if it was released immediately. So far, in the history of the KBO League, there are only a handful of foreign hitters who have failed this much.

In terms of players who played more than 20 games, Haitai Sean Hair in 1998 (29 games batting average, .206 no home run, 3 RBIs, OPS .500), 2002 Lotte Chris Hatcher (25 games batting average, .162 1 home run, 5 RBIs, OPS .426), 2017 Nexen Danny Don (20 games batting average .140 1 home run 2 RBIs OPS .486), 2018 Doosan Jimmy Paredis (21 games batting average .138 1 home run 4 RBIs OPS .443), 2021 LG Justin Bohr (32 games batting average .170 3 homers, 17 RBIs, OPS .545), and 2022 LG Rio Ruiz (27 games batting average, .155, 1 home run, 6 RBIs, OPS .496) inherit the worst foreign hitter lineage, but this year’s O’Grady was more than that.

Not sure if he is a bad player even if he has a work ethic, but O’Grady works hard enough to hit special hits from midday, not only in the 1st team but also in the 2nd team. However, he showed no signs of rebounding even after returning from the second group. On the 13th, he was in the starting lineup for 3 games in a row since the match against Munhak SSG, but was blocked with 1 hit in 11 at-bats, a batting average of 9 pennies, 1 walk, and 5 strikeouts.

Those who watch it are also saddened. When O’Grady was demoted to the 2nd team on the 23rd of last month, Hanwha coach Choi Won-ho, who first met O’Grady as the head coach of the Futures, said, “I thought ‘really serious’ when I first came down. Still, he improved his batting timing as he practiced, but he doesn’t produce hits very well. He is to the point of wondering, ‘How can you not even get that common rip-off hit?’ Even just one hit like that would loosen things up a little… ” he said sadly.

[OSEN=Daejeon, Correspondent Choi Gyu-han] Hanwha coach Choi Won-ho and other players and coaching staff are watching O’Grady’s batting training.

Now that he is back in the 1st team, he has to use O’Grady somehow for the time being. Even against Lotte on the 17th, O’Grady was named in the starting lineup for four consecutive games as the left fielder for the seventh hitter. Just in time to celebrate his 31st birthday in Korea. At the Hanwha dugout, people gathered in the Hanwha dugout to hope that they would blow up a shot on a meaningful day.

From the first at-bat in the second inning, O’Grady had a chance to run 1st and 2nd base. However, as soon as he started singing Happy Birthday in the cheering seats, he touched Lotte starter Na Kyun-ahn’s first pitch forkball and hit the first base ground ball. Lotte first baseman Kim Min-soo’s throw to second base slipped slightly to the side, and shortstop Lee Hak-joo, who entered base cover, failed to throw, and O’Grady was content to advance the second base runner one more base. The next hitter, Park Jeong-hyun, hit the right hand at the right time, and it became a small stepping stone to a 1-1 tie.

His second at-bat in the 4th inning was a heartless three-pitch strikeout. After looking at the strike of the fastball outside the first pitch, the high fastball toward the body of the second pitch made the bat spin. As he was cornered into an unfavorable count, the bat had to follow the low forkball on the 3rd pitch.

[OSEN=Daejeon, Correspondent Gyu-Han Choi] At the end of the 4th inning, with 2 out and 1st base, Hanwha O’Grady is feeling sorry for the strikeout. 2023.05.17 / dreamer@osen.co.kr

However, the long-awaited hit came in the 3rd at-bat in the 7th inning without a runner. Lotte Salvation Kim Do-gyu pulled the second low fastball and produced a line drive batted ball. Lotte right fielder Yoon Dong-hee rushed as if to catch it, but the hit landed next to him. The Daejeon crowd cheered for O’Grady’s rare hit, and the Hanwha players in the first base dugout were also happy and celebrated as if it were their own. It was the first time in 39 days since the SSG match on the 8th of last month that O’Grady hit at home in Daejeon. With his 10th hit of the season, his batting average rose slightly to 10% (10 hits in 77 at-bats).

After the hit, O’Grady, who entered the dugout after being replaced by runner Lee Won-seok, gave high-fives with his teammates, but he could hardly let go of his hard expression. He still seemed to be burdened with the burden of not being able to fulfill his duties as a foreign hitter. He wasn’t supposed to be happy with a single hit, but when Chae Eun-seong hit the final hit in the 10th inning, he was happy to spray water with his teammates and showed a faint smile as he gave victory high-fives with manager Choi Won-ho.

I wonder if a hit on his birthday and a thrilling walk-off victory will pierce O’Grady’s clogged blood.