[Official] 'Thunderbolt': Hanwha in emergency autumn baseball alert as top-ranked player Kang Baek-ho sidelined with side injury; KBO removes 17 players en masse from rosters

*This content was translated by AI.

A thunderbolt-like news has reached the Hanwha Eagles organization and its fans. Kang Baek-ho (27), who leads the team in both home runs and RBIs, has been sidelined due to an injury. This is a critical emergency for Hanwha, which is aiming for autumn baseball.

On the 20th, Hanwha announced, "After Kang Baek-ho underwent medical examination at a hospital, he was diagnosed with a strain of the left lateral abdominal muscle. Accordingly, his name has been removed from the roster, and we plan to determine his return timeline through follow-up examinations."

Kang Baek-ho started as the designated hitter batting fourth in Hanwha's home game against Kiwoom Heroes at Daejeon Hanwha Life Eagles Park the previous day (19th). His performance was not poor.

In the bottom of the sixth inning with no outs and runners on first and second, Kang Baek-ho hit a sacrifice fly to left field, proving his presence. However, he complained of pain in his left side during base running and was eventually replaced by a pinch runner.

A detailed medical examination conducted one day later confirmed muscle damage, making it inevitable for him to be out for the foreseeable future.

After finishing last season, Kang Baek-ho signed a free agent (FA) contract with Hanwha from KT Wiz under terms of up to 10 billion won over four years. Since joining, he has delivered performances commensurate with his value from his first year onward.

This season, Kang Baek-ho has appeared in 82 games, recording a .315 batting average (99 hits in 314 at-bats), 23 home runs, 86 RBIs, and an OPS (on-base plus slugging) of 0.980. He is currently leading the league alone in RBIs and tied for third in home runs, demonstrating top-tier performance. With both home runs and RBIs ranking first on his team, he is an irreplaceable asset.

Kang Baek-ho's absence has made Hanwha's path to autumn baseball even more difficult. Recently, Hanwha's core lineup, including Yonatan Peraza and Noh Si-hwan, has been struggling simultaneously with injuries. Particularly painful was the team's lifeless 1-3 record in a four-game series against last-place Kiwoom Heroes, which marked the first schedule of the second half. As a result, Hanwha now trails fifth-place Doosan Bears by four games.

Additionally, on this day, a total of 17 players across the KBO League were removed from their first-division rosters, including Kang Baek-ho.

First, Hanwha removed outfielder Lee Do-hoon along with Kang Baek-ho from its first-division roster. LG Twins removed infielder Cheon Seong-ho, while SSG Landers removed infielder Go Myeong-jun, outfielder Kim Sung-wook, and pitcher Han Du-sol from their rosters respectively.

Samsung Lions also saw outfielder Park Seung-gyu, pitcher Lee Jae-ik, and infielder Lee Hae-seung removed from their first-division roster. NC Dinos excluded three pitchers: Song Myeong-gi, Choi Woo-seok, and Ha Jun-young.

Lotte Giants removed outfielder Shin Yun-hoo and pitcher Lee Jun-seo; KIA Tigers removed pitcher Kim Si-hoon and infielder Eom Jun-hyun; Kiwoom Heroes removed outfielder Im Ji-yeol from their first-division rosters respectively.

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*This content was translated by AI.