Long-term weakness got bigger

"After a thorough examination, Han Dong-hee's right internal oblique muscle rupture was confirmed. He needs rehabilitation for the next four to six weeks," Lotte said on Sunday.

Han Dong-hee collapsed holding his right side after hitting at bat in the bottom of the fifth inning in a home game against SSG Landers in the 2024 Shinhan Bank SOL Bank KBO League exhibition game at Sajik Baseball Stadium in Busan on the 10th.스포츠토토

In a one-ball one strike, Han vigorously swung his bat on SSG pitcher Lee Rowoon's third high fastball. The result was a foul, but Han collapsed holding onto his right side. He collapsed on the ground complaining of pain.

On the Lotte bench, the trainer rushed to the ground and checked Han Dong-hee's condition. It was impossible to continue the game, and Lee Hak-joo was put in as a pinch hitter and played at-bat instead of Han Dong-hee.

Immediately after his replacement, Han Dong-hee moved to Good Samsung Hospital, a hospital designated by Lotte. However, he was not able to have a thorough checkup, including an MRI scan, because it was the weekend. The next day, he was diagnosed to require at least a month and a half of rehabilitation time.

Lotte's second-year outfielder Kim Min-seok suffered a ruptured right internal abdominal muscle during defensive training at Sajik Baseball Stadium on the 7th. It is not possible to join the opening of the regular season on the 23rd as it has been suggested that a one-month recovery period is needed.

Han Dong-hee's departure is even more fatal. Kim Tae-hyung, manager of Lotte since this season, expressed satisfaction with his team's current performance, but also regretted that he lacked the capacity to make big shots.

Lotte had no hitters with double-digit home runs except for Jeon Joon-woo (17 home runs), the oldest player in the team, and Yoo Kang-nam (10 home runs), the main catcher in the 2023 season. Jack Rex, who was kicked out due to injury, had four home runs, and Goodrum, who was recruited as a substitute, had no home runs, and the batting power of the batters was too weak as he failed to farm foreign batters.

Lotte's slugging percentage in the 2023 season stood at 0.362, ranking eighth among the 10 teams, below the league average of 0.374. The absence of a slugger who could change the course of the game contributed to Lotte's failure to advance to the post season, as the team fell to seventh place in the final rankings.

Lotte has 69 homeruns for its team for the 2023 season, a far cry from the league's average of 92 homeruns. Since his first year in retirement, Lee Dae-ho, who was responsible for 23 homeruns in the 2022 season, has realized his absence. FA shortstop Noh Jin-hyuk, who had expected a double-digit homerun, did not contribute much to his batting performance, as he ended up with only four homeruns despite injury and sluggishness.

Lotte pinned its hopes on Victor Reyes and Han Dong-hee, the new foreign hitters this season. Han Dong-hee is likely to join the Armed Forces Sports Unit in June, but if he adds strength to the central lineup even by the middle of the season, the ranking fight could have been much easier.

After graduating from Kyungnam High School in 2018 and joining Lotte as the first designated player, Han Dong-hee played in 87 games in the first division since his debut season as a professional player, batting average of 0.232 (49 hits in 211 at-bats), four homers and 25 RBIs. He showed steady growth every year, with a batting average of 0.278 (128 hits in 461 at-bats) of 17 homers and 67 RBIs in the 2020 season, a batting average of 0.267 (113 hits in 424 at-bats) of 17 homers and 69 RBIs in the 2021 season, and a batting average of 0.307 (140 hits in 456 at-bats) of 14 homers and 65 RBIs in the 2022 season.

Although he showed poor performance with a batting average of 0.223 (71 hits in 319 at-bats) and five homers and 32 RBIs in 108 games last year, he was still one of the pillars of Lotte's batting lineup. He gave up his rest throughout the winter and moved to the U.S., where he took personal batting lessons from former major leaguer Kang Jung-ho to try to overcome his slump.

Han Dong-hee hit a home run in a game against the Chiba Lotte Marines of the Japanese pro baseball league last month, raising expectations for his stellar performance in the 2024 season. However, due to unfortunate injury, he will not be able to appear on the ground until at least April.

Lotte's slugging power, which is already pointed out as a weakness, has been hit harder by Han Dong-hee's departure. The efforts of existing batters and the growth of promising players have become more urgent than any other year.