Hanwha’s new foreign hitter, Brian O’Grady (31), who had a hard time adapting to the KBO League and received bad comments from some extreme fans, prepared an opportunity to rebound by playing the first 3 games including the final hit.
O’Grady started as the designated hitter 5 times in the 2nd game토토사이트 of the season against KT in the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League held at Suwon KT Wiz Park on the 15th and played an active role with 1 hit in 3 at-bats, 2 RBIs and 2 walks, leading the team to a 7-2 victory. Led the season’s first winning streak.
O’Grady’s batting average before the game was just 10.63. On this day, from his first at-bat, he showed a batting fit for a foreign hitter. He appeared in the first inning when it was 0-0, with 2 out, 1st and 2nd bases, and hit a double with 2 RBIs against an opponent who was excluded from KT selection. After cutting the 5th pitch slider from 2B-2S, he again hit the 6th pitch slider properly, leading to the second double of the season that hit the right wall directly. It was the moment when the final blow was struck.
After striking out in the second inning, O’Grady emerged as the lead in the fifth inning with a 4-1 lead, and recorded exclusion and a walk at the end of an 8-pitch match. Later, after a fly ball to center field in the 7th inning, he walked again in the 9th inning, making his first three on-base game in his debut.
“The mood and feeling are always good,” O’Gredi said after the game. However, there are times when baseball doesn’t work out for him, and there can be ups and downs if you try too hard. Still, I always try to keep it in the best condition.” He developed a strategy to target specific pitches. As a result, I had several good swings and picked out two walks. I am very happy that it seems to have gone in a good direction.”
O’Grady, who has experienced baseball in the United States and Japan, became a Hanwha Man in December last year for a total of $900,000. However, contrary to his expectations, he played in 10 games after the opening and fell into a slump with a batting average of .186, an on-base percentage of .178, a batting average of . In the demonstration game, he hit 3 home runs despite a sluggish batting average of 10.14 in 12 games, but when the regular season started, the long hits disappeared. O’Grady was initially noted as a power hitter.
Due to the continued sluggishness, some extreme fans even wrote malicious comments on O’Grady’s personal SNS account. On the morning of the 15th, O’Grady posted on his SNS, “There were a lot of comments asking me to go home to my daughter’s picture. Again, no one wants me to run better than I do.” There’s a lot of season left. The Eagles still have a lot of games to win.” The post was deleted after a while.
O’Gredi said, “Actually, I went through this last year, and I didn’t intend to make it this big. What my colleagues around me think and how the club staff help me is more important than criticism from a few fans. Not all Hanwha fans hate me. That’s what a few bad fans do. A lot of good fans send me a lot of cheering messages saying ‘I’m doing well’. It is important to forget everything and move forward. It should help the team develop.”
The strong trust and encouragement of Hanwha coach Carlos Subero also served as the basis for their success on the 15th. O’Grady said, “The coach tells me, ‘I always have faith because I’m a good hitter.’ Fortunately, today (5th) I went out to number 5 and could have good results. I am grateful to the director who always inspires confidence.”
On the 15th, O’Grady was able to shake off some of his mental struggles with his 3 on-base performance, including the final hit. He said, “Thank you to the fans who send a lot of support. No matter what I look like, they will send me the best support until the end.” I will also use my abilities to the fullest to help the team win.”