The visa issuance for Samsung Lions’ new foreign hitter Lewin Diaz (28) has been completed. If he passes the medical test, he will be able to see Diaz wearing a Samsung uniform. With all the foreign hitters he recruited earlier failing, attention is focusing on whether Samsung will be able to benefit from foreign hitters.스포츠토토
“Diaz has been issued a visa at the Embassy of Mexico. He will arrive in Korea on July 14,” a Samsung official told Spotify News on Wednesday. The situation has taken a big turn to get a visa. Now, if there are no abnormalities in the medical examination, Samsung will be able to spend the rest of the season with the new foreign hitter Diaz. He will be able to join the team as early as this week.
Samsung found a new foreign hitter after many twists and turns. Under the KBO rules, players must be registered by August 15 to be hired during the post season. This is why most teams set the deadline for replacing foreign players. Samsung looked for a new foreign player from the time Ruben Cardenas first complained of back pain, and contacted Diaz, who is playing in the Mexican league.
In fact, it was the match against Hanwha in Daegu on the 7th that the break-up with Cardenas was official. Prior to the game, coach Park Jin-man entered Cardenas, who had shown a lackluster attitude in the game on the 6th, and canceled it. Cardenas, who refused to participate due to back pain after six games, expressed his intention to play to the coaching staff himself, and coach Park Jin-man used Cardenas as a pinch hitter in the second half of the game.
However, with runners on first and one out in the bottom of the eighth inning, Cardenas struck out Kim Bum-soo. He said he felt pain again. The problem happened during the defense process in the top of the ninth inning. Samsung right-hander Lee Seung-hyun had a heavy hit by Hanwha’s Kim Tae-yeon. Cardenas raced after the ball and threw it as if he were playing catch. Kim Tae-yeon, who did not miss the opportunity, quickly moved on and settled on second base. He was able to break it with a single stroke, but Cardenas’ complacent play put him on the verge of losing a point. Park Jin-man immediately replaced Cardenas with Kim Heon-gon. When Cardenas entered the dugout, Park Jin-man avoided his seat, and his teammates also turned their backs.
Diaz, who is joining the Samsung Lions, is a left-handed hitter who doubles as a first baseman and outfielder. Since his Major League debut with the Miami Marlins in 2020, Diaz has played 112 games for the past three years with 13 homers, 27 RBIs and 30 runs batted in (58 hits in 321) with an on-base percentage of 0.227 (on-base plus slugging percentage) of 0.30 OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage) of 0.567.
He recently played in the Minor League. Diaz, who played for the Norfolk Ties, a Triple-A team under the Baltimore Orioles in the 2023 season, played 118 games. He had 17 home runs, 60 RBIs, 64 runs and a batting average of 0.268 (111 hits in 414 times at bat) and a 0.362 slugging percentage of 0.442 OPS of 0.804.
Diaz, who left the United States, wore a uniform for Jose del Mexico as the Mexican League Diablos, and showed good performance with a 0.452 slugging percentage of 0.455 (101 hits in 269 at-bats) in 75 games.
This year, Samsung was plagued by foreign hitters. David MacKinnon had a high batting performance in the early part of the season, but he struggled with KBO pitchers after seeing through his shortcomings. And the acquired Cadenas will also leave Korea amid controversy over his poor performance. Will Samsung’s choice produce a good result this time.