KIA's blockbuster "shocking debut at-bat" → three-run homer explosion! A real lucky charm has arrived, "writing a new page in KIA club history" [Gwangju on-site]

*This content was translated by AI.

KIA Tigers' replacement foreign hitter Adellin Rodriguez (35) left a strong impression by hitting a home run from his very first at-bat in his KBO League debut. After arriving in Korea and adjusting to the time difference in just three days, Adellin started the game and perfectly proved his value with a single swing.

Adellin started the game on the 5th at Gwangju-KIA Champions Field in the regular-season home match against Hanwha Eagles of the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League as the fifth hitter and first baseman.

Adellin's home run came in the first inning. In the bottom of the first, KIA's leadoff hitter Park Jae-hyun was retired on a ground ball to the shortstop, and Kim Ho-ryeong struck out looking. However, Kim Seon-bin reached base with a single to left field, and Kim Do-young hit a double to left-center, creating a two-out, bases-loaded opportunity.

Adellin stepped into the batter's box at that moment. The Champions Field erupted in warm applause welcoming the new KIA uniform. Adellin wisely selected the first pitch, a curveball, and the second and third pitches, sliders outside the strike zone. He then let go of a 143 km/h fastball.

And on the fifth pitch. Adellin attacked a slider (127 km/h) from Hanwha's starter Kang Geon-woo that was tightly inside the outer zone, launching a three-run homer that soared well over the center-field wall. The replacement foreign hitter, an outsider, hit a powerful home run in his very first at-bat. The distance was measured at 127 meters.

Before Adellin, there were 21 players in KBO League history who hit a home run in their debut at-bat. Adellin became the 22nd player to achieve this record. Among foreign players, he is the sixth. Adellin set the second debut-at-bat home run record in Tigers club history (the first was by Hwang Jung-rim on September 14, 2012, in the second game against Lotte DH at Mudeung).

Before the game on this day, KIA manager Lee Beom-ho emphasized regarding Adellin, "Since the foreign player came as a first baseman, we will continue to use him at first base for the time being."

He continued, "We planned to rest Kim Do-young for today, but he said he could play as a designated hitter. Originally, we intended to start Adellin as the designated hitter and rest Kim Do-young, but since Kim Do-young took the designated hitter spot, Adellin ended up starting at first base."

Meanwhile, Adellin is the position player KIA signed as a replacement foreign hitter for Harold Castro, who recently left the lineup due to a hamstring injury. KIA announced the day before (the 4th) that "we signed Adellin Rodriguez as a replacement foreign hitter for Castro," adding that "Adellin signed a six-week contract with an annual salary of $50,000."

Adellin, from the Dominican Republic, is a right-handed batter and right-handed thrower infielder with a physique of 190 cm in height and 95 kg in weight. Adellin has experience playing in the U.S. minor leagues and in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) with Orix and Hanshin, and recently has mainly played in the Mexican League.

He began his professional career with the New York Mets in 2009 and continued his career with the Seattle Mariners, Baltimore Orioles, San Diego Padres, Detroit Tigers, and others.

In total across the minor leagues, he recorded a .271 batting average (4,619 at-bats, 1,254 hits), 215 home runs, 840 RBIs, 322 walks, 998 strikeouts, a .325 on-base percentage, a .476 slugging percentage, and an OPS (on-base plus slugging) of 0.801. At the minor league Triple-A level, over three seasons, he played 236 games, recording 258 hits, 60 home runs, 204 RBIs, 149 runs scored, a .296 batting average, and an OPS of 0.939. However, he never made it to the major leagues. In NPB, over two seasons, he played 83 games, recording 52 hits, 8 home runs, 34 RBIs, 16 runs scored, a .202 batting average, and an OPS of 0.606.

Last year in the Mexican League, he played a total of 134 games, recording 168 hits, 42 home runs, 125 RBIs, 103 runs scored, a .323 batting average, and an OPS of 0.966.

KIA explained about Adellin, "He is a hitter with rich experience accumulated across various leagues and strong power-hitting ability." A KIA official said, "Adellin is a player excellent at producing hard-hit balls, and we expect him to play a key role in the heart of the lineup during Castro's injury absence." And in his debut game, even in his first at-bat, he hit a powerful home run, thrilling the KIA children fans who visited Champions Field on Children's Day.

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*This content was translated by AI.