The formidable speed of Bae Ji-hwan (24, Pittsburgh Pirates), who has already filled 10 stolen bases, is in the spotlight.
ㅋㅋㅋ벳 On the 27th (Korean time), in the 2023 Major League Baseball home game against the Los Angeles Dodgers held at PNC Park in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, Bae Ji-hwan left a strong impact by recording 3 hits, 1 RBI, 2 runs and 3 steals in 4 at-bats. In the game against the Dodgers the previous day (26th), he also recorded 2 hits and 2 stolen bases, so he showed an amazing rise by accumulating 5 hits and 5 stolen bases in two days.
He already had double-digit steals. Bae Ji-hwan has a batting average of .254, on-base percentage of .312, and slugging percentage of .366 this season, with 2 homers, 9 RBIs and 10 stolen bases. At this rate, it is expected that Choo Shin-soo will break the record of the most stolen bases (22) in a single season by a Korean major leaguer in 2010.
Even in the US, Bae Ji-hwan’s crazy speed is paying attention. On this day, NBC Sports Edge, an American fantasy sports website, mentioned that Bae Ji-hwan recorded 3 hits and 3 stolen bases against the Dodgers, and said, “Bae Ji-hwan’s speed continues to cause enormous problems for opposing teams. It made it possible for me to win the role as the main player in the season.
In fact, Bae Ji-hwan’s stealing show was already predicted. Bae Ji-hwan, who played in 108 games in Triple-A last year, accumulated 30 stolen bases while batting .289 with 8 homers and 53 RBIs. He failed to steal bases only eight times. Bae Ji-hwan, who recorded a total of 91 steals in the minor leagues, debuted in the major leagues last year and showed off his presence by recording 3 stolen bases while recording 6 RBIs with a batting average of .333 in 10 games.
Above all, the power of Bae Ji-hwan lies in the success rate of stealing bases. He succeeded in stealing 10 bases this year and only failed once, so the impact is inevitable. Eventually, he must get on base to be given the opportunity to steal. He coincidentally had 5 hits and also stole 5 bases in the two days against the Dodgers. Now, to Bae Ji-hwan, going on base means stealing. From the opposing team’s point of view, it can be said to be the most demanding runner. So, the evaluation of “causing trouble to the opposing team” is by no means an exaggeration.