Pittsburgh Pirates Bae Ji-hwan performed impressively.
Pittsburgh defeated Tampa Bay Rays 7-3 in the 2024 Major League Baseball exhibition game held at Charlotte Sports Park in Fort Charlotte, Florida on Wednesday (Korea time). Pittsburgh has recorded four wins and six losses in the exhibition game. Tampa Bay, on the other hand, has recorded two wins and six losses.
Ahead of his defense in the sixth inning, Bae was deployed as a center fielder. On the day, Bae had one hit, one RBI and one stolen base from two times at bat. He also displayed diving catches in defense, displaying stellar performance in offense and defense. At exhibition games, Bae had a batting average of 0.222 (2 hits from nine times at bat) and an on-base percentage of 0.500, or 0.222 OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage) in six games.
Bae played in the sixth inning with a 6-2 lead. And Bae added an out count in the sixth inning when he lightly caught a hit by leadoff hitter Ruben Cadenas.
Bae Ji-hwan, who came to bat for the first time in the seventh inning, faced off the opposing pitcher Sean Armstrong. However, Bae’s hit did not deviate from the infield. The ball was caught by second baseman Ronnie Simone, and Bae had to resign on a grounder to the second base.
But Bae had a hit in his final at-bat. With two outs and a runner on second base in the ninth inning ahead 6-3, Bae faced off against Enmanuel Mayya. And Bae hit a hit to the right, and Bae’s RBI single went up as the runner on second base homered.
Bae Ji-hwan was active even in his fistula. When Joe Perez, the follow-up hitter, was at the batter’s box, Bae stole the second base. At this point, the catcher’s throw was thrown out and the ball went out to the outfield, and Bae took the third base. It was the moment when his fast feet stood out. However, as Perez stepped out for an error, Bae failed to home.
Even in his last defense in the ninth inning, Bae Ji-hwan showed off a fantastic defense. With no runners on the bases with one out, Tampa Bay’s Francisco Meiya sent a sharp ball to center field. Bae quickly rushed in, located the fallball, and hit the ball with a flying motion. Bae’s defense stood out.
Bae is one of the most powerful players in the Major League Baseball as well. The official major league website MLB.com said, “Bae spent an average of 4.05 seconds running from home plate to first base. It was the best record in 2023 in the Major League. His speed of sprinting hit 29.7 feet per second. This is the 16th fastest record in the Major League,” in complimenting his performance.
Bae Ji-hwan is full of confidence in his flagship work. He wanted to show off his speed just like his role model, Ichiro Suzuki. Bae said, “I have fun with my speed. Everyone used his speed when hitting home runs. I want to be like that, too.” 밤알바
Pittsburgh manager Derek Shelton also said, “Bae Ji-hwan has excellent athletic ability. He also has the ability to play in various positions. He is a very important player for us.”
Bae Ji-hwan is gradually increasing his performance through exhibition games. Attention is focusing on whether he will be able to show his performance this season.
