It seems that the bat of foreign hitter Socrates Brito (32) of the KIA Tigers has not been heated up yet. What Kia wants from Socrates is also a long hit. However, Socrates’ performance has not met Kia’s expectations yet. Manager Lee Bum-ho just wants Socrates to do his best.스포츠토토
“I pray every day for Socrates to do well,” KIA manager Lee Bum-ho told reporters ahead of the “2024 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League” Kiwoom Heroes match at Gocheok Sky Dome on Monday. “Socrates is such an important player for us. He is the center hitter. If Socrates hits actively in the center lineup with Choi Hyung-woo, the game can be easily played,” he said, urging Socrates to rebound.
“Socrates has to hit a shot at the beginning of the game to solve the game easily. I’m praying that I can find my performance soon,” he said, stressing that Socrates should play an important role.
With Na Sung-bum missing, Socrates’ importance has increased. Na Sung-bum suffered a right hamstring injury during an exhibition game. It is good news for KIA that he is showing a rapid recovery speed. Na Sung-bum is speeding up his return by running and batting training. The timing of his return is expected to be early May, and until then, Socrates had the heavy responsibility to lead the attack along with Choi Hyung-woo. However, Socrates’ performance has not yet fallen short of expectations
Socrates made his KBO league debut as a member of the Kia Tigers in 2022. He has been a slow starter for the past two years. In the first year, he suffered from a severe slump and was on the verge of being kicked out. However, he became a different hitter when the heat wave hit him. Records prove this. According to his performances in the 2022 season, Socrates recorded a batting average of 0.227 (22 hits, one home run in 97 times at bat) between March and April, and in May, he recorded a batting average of 0.415 (44 hits, five home runs in 106 times at bat) to lead Kia’s offense. Since then, he has posted a batting average of nearly 30 percent, leading the team’s offense.
The same was true in 2023. Socrates, who had a batting average of 0.278 (25 hits and two homers in 90 times at bat) between March and April, jumped to 0.318 (27 hits and four homers in 85 times at bat) in May. He had a batting average of 0.286 (24 hits and five homers in 84 times at bat), a batting average of 0.281 (16 hits and two homers in 57 times at bat) in July, a batting average of 0.278 (22 hits and three homers in 79 times at bat) in August, and a batting average of 0.276 (42 hits and four homers in 152 times at bat) after September. Socrates showed particularly sluggish performance in the early days of the season.
The same applies this year. Socrates’ batting average was only 0.229 (24 hits in 105 at-bats for three home runs) between March and April. His slugging percentage is also low at 0.381. It is comforting to perform well when he has a chance to score a point. Socrates had a batting average of 0.333 (10 hits in 30 times at bat). He also had nine RBIs.
Despite the injuries of the main players, they recorded 19 wins and 7 losses in the season. KIA is running the first place alone. It is going well, but Socrates’ slump is still regrettable. Attention is focusing on whether Socrates will be able to rebound as he did in previous years.