'Personal Reasons' Former KIA Adellin Returns to Mexican Home Team! "31 Games, 10 Home Runs, 32 RBIs in KBO — A Display of Power That Surprised Local Media"

*This content was translated by AI.

Adellin Rodriguez (35), a substitute foreign hitter who left a powerful impression on the KIA Tigers during just six weeks amid a fierce standings battle, is set to return to his former team in the Mexican Professional Baseball League (LMB).

Mexican baseball specialty outlet 'Baseball Pro' reported on the 16th (Korean time): "Dominican slugger Adellin has concluded a six-week contract with the KBO League's KIA Tigers. Having rejected KIA's offer to extend the contract, he is preparing to return to his former team, 'Toros de Tijuana,' to dominate the LMB league."

Notably, the outlet expressed surprise at the power Adellin unleashed in a short period upon entering the unfamiliar Asian stage of the KBO League and enthusiastically welcomed his return.

Adellin, who signed a six-week short-term contract worth $50,000 in salary on May 4 and donned the Tigers uniform, demonstrated his power-hitting ability, which includes 215 career home runs in the minor leagues, without holding back in Korea.

Adellin's final KBO League statistics were 32 games played, a batting average of 0.264 (32 hits in 121 at-bats), 10 home runs, 31 RBIs, a slugging percentage of 0.554, and an OPS (on-base plus slugging) of 0.862. In particular, his batting average with runners in scoring position was 0.355, proving he was a reliable problem-solver in clutch situations.

The KIA organization officially announced on the 12th, ahead of the regular-season home game against the Doosan Bears at Gwangju-KIA Champions Field, that "Adellin's six-week contract was set to expire on the 12th, and we attempted to negotiate an extension, but due to the player's personal reasons, we decided not to extend the contract." Adellin started in the game against Doosan on the 12th, the final day of his contract, and played the full game, bidding a graceful farewell. Although he went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts, he completed the game well.

KIA manager Lee Beom-ho, the team's skipper, began by saying ahead of the game on the 12th regarding the failed re-signing of Adellin: "Regarding Adellin's personal reasons, it is a private matter, so I find it difficult to comment," before adding, "In any case, he has concluded things while maintaining a good relationship with us. He worked hard in various ways, but this is how it turned out."

He continued, "He performed well in every aspect. What was most important after he joined mid-season was that he significantly changed the team's atmosphere. At the time, the entire team was going through a very difficult period, but by hitting extra-base hits, he also boosted the team's overall power-hitting capability. As the power-hitting ability improved, the team's atmosphere changed as well. He also ran hard, gave his all, and contributed to steering the team in a positive direction. As a manager, I am truly grateful for these contributions."

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*This content was translated by AI.