I thought the first half would be difficult….”
Samsung Lions outfielder Koo Ja-rook, 30, had a scary experience on April 4 against the Hanwha Eagles at Hanwha Life Eagles Park in Daejeon. Koo 꽁머니지급 was playing defense in the bottom of the eighth inning when he collapsed while sprinting to catch a foul ball hit by Moon Hyun-bin. He was taken off on a stretcher.
A medical examination revealed the worst possible outcome. On May 5, a Samsung representative said, “After a thorough medical examination, we confirmed a muscle injury to Koo’s right hamstring. It is expected to take six weeks for rehabilitation.”
If it takes six weeks to rehabilitate, it could be even longer before he is ready to play. At the time, everyone thought it would be difficult for him to return in the first half of the season.
However, Guzauk’s recovery has been remarkable. As a result, there is an internal assessment that he might be able to return in the first half of the season. That’s good news for Samsung, which is in danger of falling to the bottom of the table.
Samsung coach Park Jin-man said, “I thought the first half would be difficult, but he improved his condition faster than I thought. I think we’ll be able to join them before the end of the first half,” said Park. “Of course, we have to wait and see. But it’s not as bad as I thought it would be. I’m very motivated.”
Koo was batting .295 with 54 hits, three home runs, 27 RBIs and 28 runs scored in 49 games before his injury. His .241 batting average in May broke a season-long three-game hitting streak, but he had two multi-hit games before going down with the injury.
Guzauk came into the season stronger than ever. Last season, injuries slowed him down in the first half. He didn’t make the opening day roster due to COVID-19. He then suffered a back injury in May and a hamstring injury in June. He batted .280 in the first half with just two home runs and 19 RBIs. In the second half, he hit .303 with 73 hits. For the season, he played in 99 games, batting .293 (409-for-120) with five home runs and 38 RBIs.
Even with his second-half resurgence, it’s hard not to be disappointed in Guzauk. For the first time in his career, he didn’t play 100 games, and it was also the first time in his career that he finished 메이저토토 with a batting average in the double digits and fewer than 10 home runs and 50 RBIs. On the plus side, I had eight straight years of triple-digit hits and eight straight years of double-digit steals.
So this season was important. I volunteered to go to the final workouts, and I sweated harder than anyone else in spring training. There’s a good reason why we had a good start to the season.
Samsung is in a crisis right now. They’re getting hits, but not getting into scoring position. Koo was batting .379 with 18 doubles and a .379 on-base percentage before going down with an injury. He could be a game-changer when he returns.