KIA Tigers Socrates Brito (31) played 127 games last season and recorded a batting average of 0.311, 17 homers, 77 RBIs, 83 runs scored, and an OPS of .848. He was called ‘Tess hyung’ and received absolute support from KIA fans.
Socrates, who has performed well since the first season of the KBO League, is a foreign player who has received passing marks not only in skill but also in character. Usually, foreign players go through a lot of trial and error to adapt to a new environment, but Socrates was different.
Socrates, now in his second year, is clearly more relaxed than last season. On the 16th, at the Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul, in the ‘2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League’ exhibition match between KIA Tigers and Kiwoom Heroes, Socraste gave advice to Kiwoom Hurado with a smile.
On this day, Kiwoom’s starting pitcher was Ariel Furado (27), who newly entered the KBO League this season. Hurado, a right-handed pitcher born in 1996, recorded 12 wins, 16 losses and an average ERA of 5.97 in the major leagues. However, he is a player who has experience in the major leagues and the Panama national team, but the KBO league was unfamiliar.
In his first official appearance, he struggled to adjust to the strike zone. After failing to adapt to the KBO strike zone, which is different from that of the United States, Rado recorded a large number of pitches in the early stages of the game. And he seemed puzzled by his tenacious patience at the plate for Korean hitters. He did not concede a run, but from the first inning, he faced a crisis with the bases loaded and sweated.
In particular, Socrates allowed a walk after a full count battle that went up to 8 pitches. Socrates stepped on second base when Hwang Dae-in’s follow-up hitter walked and met Hurado’s eyes on the mound. Socrates laughed brightly while exchanging short stories with Hurado. It’s like saying to Hurado, ‘Welcome, this is my first time in the KBO league. This is the place,’ he said.
Hurado is a player whose main weapon is a 155km sinker-type two-seam fastball, but the bat was not dragged out only by KIA hitters. No matter how fast the ball is, it is difficult for him to survive in the KBO league without accurate control. 토토사이트
Socrates also suffered a severe sluggishness at the beginning of last season. However, after analyzing the pitching patterns of Korean pitchers since April, he quickly adapted. Socrates is a different type of player than big-time foreign hitters, and although he swings aggressively, his strikeout rate is low compared to walks. The strikeout rate is 14.6% and the walk rate is 6.1%.
Socrates tried to watch the ball for as long as possible and not be fooled by manned pitches, in line with the propensity of Korean pitchers. As a result, he swung with some power at the plate and transformed into a style with accuracy and long hits as a medium-long distance hitter rather than a home run hitter.
Socrates gave advice with a smile as he watched even after spraying a fast ball. That being said, being from the big leagues never guarantees success. Socrates was well aware that in order to succeed in the KBO League, ‘adaptation’, not a brilliant career and name value, was the number one prerequisite.