Now it doesn’t come out of the dugout corner. I sit alone without interaction with my colleagues. On the 21st, an away game against KT Wiz of the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League held at KT Wiz Park in Suwon, Gyeonggi-do. 토토사이트 I saw a player sitting alone in the corner of the Lotte dugout. It was Nico Goodrum.
Goodrum is an alternative foreign player for Jack Rex, who had a bad knee condition in July, and Lotte recruited him for $400,000 500 million won. Goodrum is an infielder with a batting average of 0.226 311 hits, 42 home runs, 46 steals, and an OPS of 0.688 in 402 games in six seasons in the U.S. Major League Baseball. In particular, he was evaluated as a proven player in defense enough to be selected as a final candidate for the American League goal glove in the 2020 season.
But when I opened the lid, it was more than disappointing. Goodrum was the worst not only on offense but also on defense. He made 11 errors in 37 games and posted a disastrous 0.893 defense rate. In particular, during the month of August, which was the most important in the ranking fight, he poured out numerous errors and drove Lotte into a quagmire.
Due to the nature of the KBO League, the performance of foreign players has an absolute impact on team performance. However, Goodrum cannot even play due to a hamstring injury. He has never been in the starting lineup since the game against NC on the 9th. He appeared as a pinch hitter in the bottom of the ninth inning in a home game against Kiwoom in the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League held at Sajik Baseball Stadium in Busan on the 19th. He was booed when home fans cheered him up for the return of a foreign player. Even home fans turned their heads.
And in the away game against KT at Suwon KT Wiz Park in Gyeonggi-do on the 21st, the atmosphere was unusual even before the start. Goodrum was alone, arm in arm, watching his colleagues’ faces. The players also passed by without talking to Goodrum or playing around, as if they knew that Lee Jong-woon, acting coach, told the media before the game, “I don’t want to let him play at the moment.
Like that, Goodrum was alone throughout the game. Even when his teammates came into the dugout after the defense, he stood at the back of the dugout and made a light high five. Usually, after the fifth inning, candidates from both teams come to the ground and warm up lightly. But the Goodrum didn’t come out.
After Lotte lost 0-5, all players came to the ground to greet the fans. Even then, he came to the ground the latest, took off his hat, greeted lightly, and entered the dugout the fastest. I was alone from start to finish.
As of the 22nd, Lotte has 58 wins and 66 losses winning rate of 0.468 for the season, 5.5 games behind SSG in fifth place. In fact, it is true that fall baseball is difficult, but it is too early to give up because there are still 20 games left. At times like this, there is a big difference between whether there are foreign hitters or not. However, Lotte is unable to do this or that due to the risk of badrum that has been reduced to chicken ribs. Even though there were foreign players, they became one.