“Gudrum is 1m92cm tall, weighs 99kg, and is a right-handed pitcher and double-hitting inside/outfield utility player… ”메이저사이트
This is part of the press release distributed by the Lotte Giants when recruiting new foreign player Nico Goodrum on July 11th. It was clear what was expected of Goodrum. In addition to adding weight to the batting line, we hoped to fill vulnerable positions on defense and relieve the physical burden of existing players with the ability to play various positions.
Goodrum was a player who was recognized for his defense, to the point where he was one of the three finalists for the 2020 American League Gold Glove Award for shortstop. His major league and minor league records show that he has played not only shortstop, but also second base, third base, and first base, as well as both left and right field. He expected that the defense would be good even if there were question marks in the attack. Above all, he was a player that not only Lotte but all KBO league clubs were eyeing as a top replacement player. The player he said would have a low chance of failure was Gu Drum.
Goodrum played 30 games (243 innings) at first base, 22 games (185⅓ innings) at second base, and 12 games (100 innings) at third base in Triple A this year. The outfielder only played in one game. He played the most innings at shortstop in his entire career. 147 major league games (1,200⅔ innings), 294 minor league games (2,487 innings). After shortstop, the position with the most experience is third base. He played 11 games (84 innings) as a third baseman in the major leagues and 228 games (1,934 innings) in the minor leagues. The position following shortstop and third base is second base, and he played 124 games (931⅓ innings) in the major league and 91 games (752⅔ innings) in the minor league. As an outfielder, he also played 67 games and 493⅓ innings in the major league and 93 games and 732 innings in the minor league. He played equally well in left field, center field, and right field.
We confirmed that he is talented in many areas and has athletic ability. But it didn’t take long to open the lid and see that something was clearly wrong with Lotte’s choice. The question mark at the plate has not been resolved for over a month. Also, the more the game is played, the more clumsy the defense becomes. It is said that the condition of his left hamstring is not very good, but even considering that point, Goodrum is proving that he is clumsy in all defensive positions. And Gudrum’s mistakes always bring irreversible consequences to Lotte.
In the KBO League, he committed 7 errors at third base (238 innings) and 3 at shortstop (43 innings) this year. There are no errors in left field (6 innings) and right field (5 innings). And in the second game of the Changwon NC doubleheader on the 9th, Goodrum once again had a major accident. Goodrum, who missed the first game of the doubleheader, started as second baseman in the second game. The incident occurred in the 6th inning, when he was maintaining a 4-3 lead.
He was hit by a double by Oh Young-soo and a right-field hit by Kim Joo-won, putting him on the verge of reaching first and third base with no outs. Shin Jeong-rak, who was brought in as the fourth pitcher, took a breather by striking out pinch hitter Park Geon-woo. And Choi Jeong-won’s missed ball rolled slowly in front of the old drum. It is difficult to add an out at home or to target a double play. The best thing to do was to concede one point but increase the number of outs.
However, Goodrum saved all of the runners by throwing home much too late. The score was tied 4-4 and all runners survived. The record was a fielder’s choice, but it was Goodrum’s faulty play. In the end, this one play led to the butterfly effect. The situation continued with runners on 1st and 2nd with one out and a walk to Son Ah-seop, with the bases loaded, and a timely hit to right field with two RBIs to Seo Ho-cheol. The game was overturned at 4-6. Lotte had the opportunity to chase down the bases loaded with no outs in the top of the 7th inning, but only scored 1 run and lost 5-6. The opportunity to win was missed, and Goodrum dedicated the opportunity to turn the situation around.
In addition to this situation, Goodrum was unable to create a double play in the bottom of the 8th inning when he caught Son Ah-seop’s second baseman’s ground ball with no outs on first base and tried to forcefully tag Kim Hyeong-jun, the runner on first base who was caught in a narrow play. He could have driven the runner toward first base, thrown it to first base, and then driven it back to a narrow ball, but the decision was not made. He seems to have already lost confidence in his play. In the end, he failed to catch Park Min-woo’s ordinary ground ball in the ensuing game with 2 outs and runners on 1st base, causing a crisis with 2 outs and 1st and 3rd bases. His body seemed to stiffen as he hit the ball. There was no prompt response at all. Although we were at risk of conceding additional goals, it did not turn into a bigger disaster.
Acting director Jong-woon Lee is already thinking about ways to utilize Goodrum. Although he was diagnosed with hamstring pain, lack of confidence, and loss of balance, Goodrum cannot be excluded from the team right now. To relieve the burden on his infield, he also played in right field in the last 8 games. His chasing of batted balls wasn’t bad, but he showed problems with his split-second judgment and follow-up actions. He showed that the situation in the outfield was not easy.
As time passes, only the bare face becomes more and more revealed. Lotte is trying to utilize Gudrum in any way possible, but if he is not able to do his part wherever he is, there is no reason for the foreign player to exist. Unless hopes for fall baseball are completely lost, Lotte will have to play the remaining games with the Gudrum dilemma in mind.