BRADENTON, Fla. – It had been almost one year and eight months since Jung Ho Kang played his last official game in the United States.
The Pirates took on the Cardinals tonight in St. Louis, which is fitting, as Kang’s last game came on October 2nd, 2016 in St. Louis. What followed was a DUI in Korea, which ended up being his third DUI, unbeknownst to the team. That led to legal issues, which made it difficult for him to get a visa.
He missed the entire 2017 season. He played in the Dominican Republic this past winter, but struggled so much that he was cut from the team before he was originally scheduled to go home. He then established residency in the Dominican, which made it easier for him to get a visa to re-enter the US.
From that point, he built back up in extended Spring Training, playing in some unofficial games, before finally returning tonight.
I don’t want to make too much out of one game, so I’ll mostly be sticking to the results here. Kang went 0-for-3 with two walks and a run scored. He walked in the first inning, then went first-to-third on an Albert Baur single, before scoring on a sacrifice fly by Alfredo Reyes. He grounded out, drew another walk, then struck out in his final two plate appearances.
Physically, he looked to be in good shape, and was moving well. His swing was off, looking bad at times, although that’s understandable considering the long layoff. At the same time, if tonight was any indication, you shouldn’t expect a quick return to the big leagues.
His only defensive play at third base came when fielding a grounder during the second at-bat of the game, so it was hard to get a feel for the defense.
Here is video from tonight, minus the first walk. The first video includes his groundout, and his final strikeout. The next videos are his walk and first strikeout.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BjgHcQ0gWf9/?taken-by=piratesprospects
https://www.instagram.com/p/BjgJe57AeS0/?taken-by=piratesprospects
