In the first year of a 4-year, 11.5 billion won super-large free agent contract, he hit only 23 homers with a batting average of 204.8, and is having a more serious career low season in his second year. When will the bat of Doosan’s No. 4 hitter Kim Jae-hwan (35) wake up? 먹튀검증
The Jamsil KT game on the 6th was a game in which Kim Jae-hwan was greatly disappointed by Doosan fans who came to the stadium through the heat wave. Under manager Lee Seung-yeop’s consideration, he was excluded from the starting lineup for two days on the 4th and 5th and had time to reorganize. Doosan, with the 4th hitter lethargic, lost 1-3 and ended the battle for 3rd place with KT with a losing series of 1 win and 2 losses.
He struggled against KT ace Koh Young-pyo. Other Doosan batters also had difficulties in attacking Koh Young-pyo, but Kim Jae-hwan’s sluggish performance stood out. Expectations for the position of the number 4 hitter are high, and if you perform sluggishly, the disappointment is just as great. There were several swings that did not match the value of the name Kim Jae-hwan.
He started the game with a strikeout. In the first inning, he struck out with 2 outs and 1st baser Go Young-pyo’s changeup with a 3-pitch swing. In the 4th inning, he took the lead and ended up fouling the 3rd baseman, and in the 6th inning, he had a chance to score with 1 out and 2nd base, but only sent 2nd base runner Jose Rojas to 3rd base with a ground ball from the 1st baseman. And in the 8th inning, with no runners out, Park Young-hyun hit a foul fly to right fielder, ending the game unfortunately. Kim Jae-hwan’s season batting average dropped from 2.3 to 2.27. Hitless in the last 5 games.
Where the heck did it go wrong? Where did Geopo, who hit 44 home runs in 2018 and won the regular season MVP, go?
After finishing the 2021 season, Kim Jae-hwan, who was the 4th hitter of the Doosan Dynasty, signed a large free agent contract with the original team Doosan for a total of 11.5 billion won over 4 years. Kim Jae-hwan hit 188 home runs in six seasons, using the pitcher-friendly Jamsil Stadium as his home since Doosan’s 4th hitter took off in 2016. However, in 128 games in the first year of his contract, he suffered a sluggish batting average of .800 with a batting average of . Doosan, where the 4th hitter did not play his part, suffered humiliation in the first 9th place since its founding.
In response, director Lee Seung-yeop started the project to revive Kim Jae-hwan with the appointment of the command tower in October of last year. Through interviews with the player, the factors for his sluggishness were analyzed, and the media and the team showed their trust in Kim Jae-hwan day after day and started to revive the player’s spirit. Hitting coach Koji Goto, who helped win the 2018 MVP award, also returned and sweated with Kim Jae-hwan at the Australian spring camp. Kim Jae-hwan also went to Sydney ahead of the main team and digested a tremendous amount of training, shouting with utmost pride.
Contrary to expectations, Kim Jae-hwan’s first half was again a series of disappointments. He played in 76 games with a batting average of 2.4, 4 runs, 7 home runs, and 29 RBIs with an OPS of . Even when he hit a home run in the opening game, there were signs of a revival, but the pace continued with a monthly batting average of 207 1 in April, 2 3 9 in May, 2 5 in June, and 1 7 2 in July. fell. From mid-June, he gave up his seat 4 times, and moved the batting order 2nd, 3rd, 5th, etc., aiming for a rebound. Of course, the effect was not great.
Nevertheless, the command tower showed confidence in Jamsil Geopo in the first half settlement interview. Coach Lee said, “No one knows if Kim Jae-hwan will be able to play MVP-level performances again in 2018 at bat.” I will wait patiently Doosan’s lineup without Kim Jae-hwan is meaningless.”
However, in the second half of Doosan’s lineup, Kim Jae-hwan’s existence itself does not seem to have much meaning. He recorded a batting average of 1.3, 9 ri, 1 home run and 4 RBIs in 11 games, and his sense of hitting was further reduced. He has his batting average at 5.6 for the period limited to August. He had only one hit in 19 at-bats.
This is Kim Jae-hwan, whose batting average for the season has already dropped to 20.207. If the trend is now, the 2023 season is likely to be an all-time career low season. Since his jump to the starting lineup, Kim Jae-hwan’s lowest batting average in a season was 2.4 8 ri last year, and the minimum home run was 15 in 2019. At the time, the annual salary contract was evaluated for the previous season, but now a four-year contract is guaranteed with a huge amount of 11.5 billion won.
Nevertheless, the command tower’s trust is still strong. Kim Jae-hwan is still a key player in Lee Seung-yeop’s plan, and he is entrusted with a heavy duty in the second half. In the first half, there was another solver called Yang Eui-ji, but on the 7th, Yang Eui-ji found an abnormality in the flank area during a hospital checkup. If Kim Jae-hwan continues to remain silent as he did in the first half, weakening of his center batting line is inevitable.
Coach Lee said, “All professional baseball players know Kim Jae-hwan’s hard work. If you don’t get the grades you want, you’re probably the most frustrated. We should help as much as we can, but I don’t know if it will get better by wiping out players who are having a hard time. It is also a way to comfortably watch from behind,” he said. “(Yang) will is missing. Now, the time has come for Kim Jae-hwan to do it. He will do well,” he urged the Jamsil Geopo to exert themselves.