'KKKK Deleted Thanks to Rain': Two Foreign Batters as a Bold Move, When Will the Synergy Kick In?

*This content was translated by AI.

The immediate challenge for the Kiwoom Heroes is to escape last place. Avoiding the disgrace of finishing at the bottom for four consecutive years is a pressing goal shared by all members of the organization.

To that end, the team recently made a bold move by including two foreign batters in its lineup. This is the only such choice among all 10 KBO League teams this season.

Kiwoom quickly signed Davison (35), who recently parted ways with NC Dinos, alongside existing player Hiura (30). The plan was to place these two power-hitting foreign batters at the heart of the lineup to generate synergy.

However, the effect has not been particularly noticeable so far. Since Davison joined on the 4th, the team has played four games and unfortunately fell into a four-game losing streak.

In the rain-cancelled game against Suwon KT Wiz on the 9th, both third-hitter Davison and fourth-hitter Hiura struck out twice in succession off opposing starter Bae Se-seong in the first and third innings. Fortunately, these strikeouts were not officially recorded due to the rain.

Davison hit 46 home runs (1st place) in 2024 and 36 (2nd place) in 2025 during his time with NC. This season, however, he has shown a decline in power-hitting ability. In 67 games this season, he has only managed 8 home runs, and since joining Kiwoom, he has yet to hit another long ball. Over four games, his batting average stands at .200 (3 hits in 15 at-bats), with just one RBI.

Hiura, who has hit 50 career home runs in Major League Baseball, initially impressed with remarkable problem-solving ability upon joining Kiwoom, raising expectations. After his KBO League debut on May 30, he recorded an impressive .727 batting average (8 hits in 11 at-bats, including 3 home runs) in scoring position over nine games through June 9. However, in the following 25 games, he fell into a severe slump, hitting just .087 (2 hits in 23 at-bats) in scoring position.

Seol Jong-jin (53), Kiwoom's manager, reflected on the first half ahead of the KT game on the 9th, saying, "The pitching staff has found its footing to some extent, but we are disappointed that our batting average in scoring position was not as good as expected."

Despite this, he still cited the two foreign batters as key hopes for a second-half comeback. Manager Seol expressed optimism, stating, "Now that two big hitters have joined, I believe things will improve even more than they are now."

<© STARNEWS. All rights reserved. No reproduction or redistribution allowed.>

*This content was translated by AI.