Kevin Kiermaier (34), who changed into a LA Dodgers uniform, hit a decisive home run and led the team to victory.
The Dodgers won 7-6 against the St. Louis Cardinals on the 17th (Korea Standard Time) after a series of turnovers.
Coincidentally, the two transfer students brought by the Dodgers in trade were active.
One of them is Kiermaier. Kiermaier, who started as the eighth center fielder on the day, had two hits (one homer) and four RBIs in four times at bat.
Gavin Lux’s solo home run scored the first run on the day. Keirmeyer hit an RBI single following Miguel Rojas’ double to score an extra point.
However, he allowed a come-from-behind solo home run to Maisin Win in the third inning after being hit by Goldschmidt in the bottom of the second inning.
In the fifth inning, leadoff hitter Pazs drew a solo arch to reach 2-4.
However, the Dodgers started counterattack in the top of the sixth inning. Mookie Betts hit a solo home run and Rojas’ timely hit to tie the game.
Then Kiermaier’s bat fired. He hit an 87.3-mile slider on the third pitch of the changed pitcher Andrew Kittrej for a come-from-behind three-run shot. The score is 7-4.
Although he allowed one run in the bottom of the sixth inning, the Dodgers defended their team’s victory with Evan Phillips in the seventh inning, Joe Kelly in the eighth inning, and Michael Kopech in the ninth inning pitching scoreless.
For the Dodgers, Kiermaier’s shot was really precious. It would be perfect if a trade transfer showed such a good performance.
The Dodgers sent out right-hander Ryan Yarbrough in a one-on-one trade with the Toronto Blue Jays on July 31, and acquired veteran outfielder Kiermaier, a four-time Golden Glove winner. 메이저놀이터
In fact, Kiermaier has already announced his retirement after this season.
The Los Angeles Times reported that Kiermaier did not change his mind due to his excellent defense and clutch performance in 11 games for the Dodgers. However, it seems that a new environment has given Kiermaier a boost.
Kiermaier feels the same way. He said, “The Dodgers gave me life. The playoff atmosphere, the team that plays every October, this is what I wanted. Earlier this year in Toronto, my situation was… I love Toronto, but life wasn’t that enjoyable without winning,” and said after looking back, “It’s really cool to be here and play No. 1 on the planet and against them. I just want to do my part every day.”
Kiermaier, who made his big league debut with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2013, played for only one team for 10 years before moving to Toronto ahead of the 2023 season. He successfully signed a one-year contract worth 9 million U.S. dollars. He also renewed his contract for one year after the end of last season. The total amount is 10.5 million dollars (14.2 billion won).
Kiermaier is a player with good batting skills and fast feet who achieved double-digit homers and steals four times between 2015 and 2017 and 2019. However, he did not play in many games due to frequent injuries.
However, he still has outstanding defense capabilities. The Dodgers brought him because they needed an outfield guard.
Kiermaier is batting .250 (6 hits in 24 at-bats) with one home run, five RBIs and an OPS of 0.725, in 11 games.
