Will KIA Tigers Socrates Brito (31) announce the return of the slow starter? May, the hottest month of last year, is approaching.
In the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League away game against 안전놀이터the Lotte Giants held at Sajik Baseball Stadium in Busan on the 20th, Socrates started as a center fielder 3 times and recorded 1 hit, 1 RBI, and 1 walk in 4 at-bats.
Socrates hit a timely hit in the 3rd inning with one out and loaded the bases, and played a multi-on-base performance, but the team lost 3-5. KIA suffered their 10th loss of the season (4 wins) and failed to escape from the bottom, and the season’s first consecutive win was also misplaced.
On this day, Socrates contributed to the team’s score, but the overall performance at the beginning of the season was not satisfactory. This season, he has played in 14 games and has a batting average of 0.259, 1 home run and 6 RBIs. There are only two long hits, and the OPS is 0.625, less than 70%. It is clearly a report card that does not live up to the name of Socrates.
The flow is similar to the beginning of last year. In April of last year, Socrates played 24 games and had a batting average of 0.227, 1 home run, 9 RBIs, and an OPS of 0.643. This season, there are still 9 games left in April, so it is difficult to compare the results at this point, but the pace is similar.
However, Socrates had a complete transformation starting in May last season. In 26 games, he had a batting average of 0.415, 5 homers, 28 RBIs, an OPS of 1.146, and showed a distinctly different aspect by wielding a fire bat. Socrates, who had a hot first half, ended the 2021 season with a batting average of 0.311, 17 home runs, 77 RBIs, and 13 stolen bases, and an OPS of 0.848 in 127 games, and reached the goal of renewing the contract.
Recently, Socrates has been steadily producing hits, with a 6-game hitting streak. But the problem is the thirst for long shots. Socrates is the core of the team’s offense and the central hitter who plays an important role in the cleanup trio. The destructive power of Socrates, who hit 53 long hits last year, is yet to be seen.
Considering Socrates’ batting ability and the slow starter he showed last year, there is a good chance that he will revive. KIA, which has fallen to the bottom of the leaderboard, desperately needs a shot from Socrates. Could Socrates be transformed into a fortune teller again? I’m curious about his move.