Austin Dean, 31, of the LG Twins, was the centerpiece of a 29-year breakthrough last year.
He anchored the offense, batting .301 with 23 home runs and 95 RBIs in 139 regular-season games and went 3-for-5 with a home run in Game 5 of the Korean Series. LG won its first pennant in 29 years, since 1994.
The club wanted to re-sign Austin, and rightfully so. His skills and personality are still there. Austin signed for a total of $1.3 million.
LG President Cha Myung-seok said at the time of the re-signing, “Austin is a player who has clearly demonstrated his role in helping LG win the 2023 season and is an essential part of our team. He is a great player not only in terms of skill but also character. With his experience and adaptation to the KBO League, 스포츠토토 we expect him to continue to perform well next year.”
Second year in the KBO League.
Austin has become more integrated into Korea. “You can just evaluate him as a Korean player,” LG manager Yeom Kyung-yup recently said of Austin, “He’s adapted quickly, both mentally and in his thinking.”
Part of Austin’s adjustment was the presence of Casey Kelly, who is now in his sixth year with LG. Now that she’s acclimated to Korea, she’s a good mentor for foreign players. “Kelly plays a big role,” said Yeom. When we have team meetings, staff meetings, meetings with me, it’s like talking to a Korean,” he smiled.
“I think she’s doing a good job of adjusting to Korea. If he doesn’t adapt well, he just wants to take advantage of it. Austin is a really good teammate.”
Austin’s play has continued this season. In 32 games, 온라인 슬롯 he has six home runs and a .333 batting average. The best part is that he hasn’t had any major ups or downs.
Dye is also confident in Austin’s performance. “Austin is a hitter who can hit the changeup. His batting average never drops too much. He can get curveballs and hit home runs, and he can get changeups and get hits. He’s been doing that naturally this year. He strikes out a lot with fastballs, but surprisingly, he doesn’t strike out a lot with changeups. For Korean hitters, he’s like Yang Ji,” he smiled.