The Samsung Lions have suffered a major blow to their offense with the loss of center fielder Koo Ja-rook (30) to injury in the first half.
The first-half injury was confirmed for Koo, who was carried off on a stretcher after suffering a muscle injury to the back of his right thigh during the game against the Hanwha Eagles on March 3. On May 5, Samsung announced, “After a thorough medical examination, we have confirmed a right hamstring muscle injury. It is expected to take six weeks for rehabilitation.”
If it takes six weeks to rehabilitate, it could take longer than that to return to the field. That means he won’t be back until at least the first half of the season, which ends on March 13.
For a team that has struggled offensively this season, ranking ninth in team batting average (.248) and eighth in team OPS (.672), the news is a breath of fresh air. No Samsung player with regular at-bats this season has a batting average above .300. Along with Jose Pirela and Min-ho Kang, Koo has been a key part of Samsung’s offense.
In fact, before his injury, he was hitting .295 with 3 HRs, 27 RBIs, and an OPS of .834 in 49 games this season. He’s been an especially effective hitter for Samsung, hitting a league-high 18 doubles and posting a .379 on-base percentage, the highest among the team’s leadoff hitters. 스포츠토토
Koo’s departure will immediately lighten the weight of Samsung’s batting order considerably. Samsung head coach Park Jin-man will have his work cut out for him.