Choi Ji-man (Tampa Bay Rays) once again bowed his head. He started in two days, but went hitless, striking out two. This is because the bat did not respond well to the fastball.
Choi Ji-man was first baseman and 8th batter in the 2022 MLB home game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida, USA on the 25th (Korea time), but struck out two. hit in three at-bats. Choi’s batting average dropped further from 0.225 to 0.223.
Although Tampa Bay’s batters didn’t hit the batting average enough to record just four hits against Toronto on starting pitcher Alec Manoa that day, Choi’s bat didn’t follow the fastball well. Given that Choi Ji-man often hits the fastball well, such as hitting a home run against Gerrit Cole (New York Yankees), this is definitely a serious problem.
At the end of the 3rd inning, Choi Ji’s man swung his bat to a ball slightly high with a speed of 95.2 mph (153.2 km) in a two-ball, two-strike situation at the end of the third inning. out a wasteful swing from a high sinker with a speed of 95.6 mph (153.8 km/h).
At the end of the 7th inning, Choi Ji-man once again had a chance to run 2 and 2, but he could not save it. In particular, Manoa threw 113 balls and made an advantageous three-ball, one-strike count when he was nearing the limit of physical strength, but eventually retreated to a ground ball in front of the second baseman in a full count situation.
Choi Ji-man failed to properly attack Toronto reliever Jordan Romano’s fastball in the final at-bat of a two-run situation in the bottom of the ninth. He made two fouls on a full count, but ended up flying out to right field.
On that day, the pitching battle of the two teams was so hot that they went on a 0 run until the 6th inning, but Toronto, who did not miss the opportunity that came once, took the victory 3-1. Toronto clinched the win with a three-run home run that went over left-center in the first and second opportunities created by Teosca Hernandez’s double and Danny Jensen’s walk in the first and second of the 7th inning.
Toronto starting pitcher Manoa also struck out eight in seven innings and threw a scoreless streak, picking up his 15th win (7 loss) of the season. Toronto lost three straight games and recorded 85 wins and 67 losses.
Tampa Bay, which showed offensive prowess to pull off 10 points against Toronto for two consecutive days, recovered one point with a perfectly timed shot by pinch hitter Harold Ramirez in the bottom of the 8th inning, but ended up winning two games in a row. and fell back to third place in the AL East with 84 wins and 68 losses.
[서울=뉴시스]
