Bae “Lightning” Ji-hwan, 24, who has been out of the major leagues with an ankle injury, is accelerating his return to the big leagues. He will begin his rehabilitation in the minor leagues. Choi Ji-Man (32, Pittsburgh Pirates) has been performing well lately, so we may soon see the “Korean Duo” in Pittsburgh.
According to MLB.com, the official website of Major League Baseball (MLB), Bae began a rehab assignment with Triple-A Indianapolis earlier this week.
Bae has impressed South Korean fans with his performance early this season. First and foremost, he utilized his quick feet to make bouncy plays on the basepaths, making “foot baseball” a joy to watch. Even if he hit an ordinary infield grounder, he could still make it to first base. In addition, he played all-weather defense in both the infield and outfield, earning a lot of applause from the Pittsburgh fans.
It was on March 2 that Bae got hurt. After hitting a grounder to second base in the bottom of the eighth inning of a home game against Milwaukee, he turned to run to first base and came to a halt a few steps short. Pittsburgh manager Derek Shelton and a trainer then came onto the field to assess Bae’s condition.
His injury was not light. “Bae has been placed on the 10-day disabled list (IL) with a left ankle sprain,” the Pittsburgh organization announced the next day. After an unexpectedly early end to the first half, he focused on his recovery and dreamed of returning. Since then, Bae has been slowly making progress in his rehabilitation, playing catch and taking fielding drills since the past 20 days.
And now, Bae plans to get more hands-on experience by playing in a minor league game. If there are no major problems with his body after playing in the minors, he will be called up to the first team. In the end, it will be important for him to find his feet as soon as possible.스포츠토토
This season, Bae is playing his first full season in the major leagues after being recalled by his manager. Before his injury, he was batting .238 (51-for-214) with two home runs, 19 RBIs, and 20 stolen bases in 76 games. The return of Bae, whose gritty play has energized Pittsburgh, is in the early going.