On this day, the KBO League’s second hit by the minor league triple-A home run king did not come out.
Jason Martin, a new NC foreign hitter, started as a center fielder in the 2023 KBO League demonstration game against KT Wiz held at Suwon KT Wiz Park on the 27th and was silent with no hits and one strikeout in three at-bats.
Martin retired with a fly ball to center fielder in the first at-bat with two out and first base in the first inning when the score was 0-0. KT starter Jo So-Jun Sohn took advantage of the 3B-1S count, but failed to capture the 140km fastball in the 5th pitch. Afterwards, in the 4th inning with no outs and 1st base behind 0-1, 2B-2S struck out on a swing due to So Joon Sohn’s falling curve. As if the game wasn’t going well, Martin went into the dugout with a wry smile.
There was no reversal in the last at-bat either. Appeared as the lead in the 7th inning when the score was 0-2, KT side arm pitcher Lee Chae-ho only grounded the opposing first baseman. After the first ball, he withdrew with a change-up on the second pitch.
Martin was replaced by Oh Tae-yang at the start of defense in the bottom of the 7th inning, and the game ended unfortunately. After the first hit against Kiwoom on the 21st, he was silent for 4 consecutive games, and his batting average in the exhibition game dropped from 5.3 to 4.5.
Martin signed a contract with NC for a total of 1 million dollars (about 1.2 billion won) in December of last year. At the time, NC said, “Martin is a player with a good starting point, excellent contact ability and power, and tied for first place (32) in the Triple A Pacific Coast League home run category in 2022.” In fact, Martin is a proven player whose batting ability has been recognized in 85 major league games and 849 minor league games.
However, the results of the demonstration games are below expectations. It is said that he is in the league adaptation phase, but he played in 8 games including this day and only hit 1 hit while digesting 26 at-bats.메이저사이트 His record was 1-for-22 with 1 RBI, 4 walks and 10 strikeouts. His batting average dropped to a whopping 4 pun 5 li.
The command tower’s view is that Martin’s sluggishness is not a big problem. He has the expectation that he will show off the performance he originally expected if he just passes the gateway of adaptation to the league. Coach Kang In-kwon said, “If you just throw away the impatience, I think he will adapt quickly because he is a player with skills. He also told the player, ‘I think it’s a process now, and I’m willing to wait, so throw away your impatience’. I will watch,” he said.