Kang Baek-ho (23), the leading batter of professional baseball KT, went down to the second team again. This is a move that reflects the consideration of the coaching staff that he needs more time to recover mentally.
KT coach Lee Kang-cheol met reporters at the dugout ahead of the 2023 KBO League home game against LG held at Suwon KT Wiz Park on the 27th and said, “(Kang) Baek-ho felt that he needed more time, so he was removed from the first team entry.” I guess I’ll have to focus on recovery. Only then can it change,” he explained.
Kang Baek-ho, who joined KT in the second round after graduating from Seoul High School in 2018, rose to KT’s signature hitter as soon as he debuted. Kang Baek-ho, who showed his genius with a batting average of 0.290, 29 home runs and 84 RBIs in 2018 as a rookie, has risen as a young hitter representing the KBO League with batting averages of 0.336, 0.330, and 0.347 from 2019.꽁머니
However, last season, he played only 62 games, batting average of 0.245, 6 homers, and 29 RBIs, and in the 2023 World Baseball Classic (WBC) held in Japan in March, he hit a double and then fell off the base during a ceremony and was tagged out. faced criticism. In May, he was once again on the cutting board by allowing a goal with a loose relay play while defending right field.
Kang Baek-ho, who received great criticism from the fans and was mentally shocked, was excluded from the first team entry on June 9 due to overlapping cold body pain.
Kang Baek-ho, who returned to the first team stage after losing more than 10kg, seemed to regain his former skills by running a 3-point home run in the match against Samsung in Daegu on the 21st, the first game of the second half, but after that, it seems to be sluggish again. After returning to the first team, his batting average is only 0.136 (3 hits in 22 at-bats) in 8 games.
Director Lee decided that Kang Baek-ho needed a bit more recovery in terms of mentality, so he was sent to the second team. KT filled Kang Baek-ho’s vacant position with left-handed pitcher Ha Jun-ho.