Fans of the Hanwha Eagles, a professional baseball team, will especially miss foreign player Mike Tauchman, who has returned to the major leagues after overcoming a right hamstring injury.
Major League Baseball's official website, ‘MLB.com’, reported on the 7th (Korean time) that 'the Chicago White Sox have called up outfielder Mike Tauchman, who was placed on the 10-day injured list due to a right hamstring injury ahead of their away game against the Detroit Tigers.'
Tauchman, who made his major league debut with the Colorado Rockies in 2017, played for the New York Yankees from 2019 to 2021 before first stepping foot on Korean soil in 2022. Wearing the Hanwha uniform under a contract worth $1 million, Tauchman showed reliability and durability by starting in all 144 games.
He posted respectable statistics with a batting average of .289 (166 hits in 575 at-bats), 12 home runs, 43 RBIs, 88 runs scored, and 19 stolen bases. Although he contributed significantly in defense and base running, his lack of power and decisiveness as a foreign player led to a failure to re-sign.
Having dreamed of the Korean Dream but unable to continue his journey with Hanwha, Tauchman signed a minor league contract with the Chicago Cubs. After an injury to Cody Bellinger, a well-known teammate of Hyun-jin Ryu (current Hanwha pitcher) during his time with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Tauchman got the chance to play, appearing in 108 games and posting a batting average of .252 (85 hits in 337 at-bats), with 8 home runs, 48 RBIs, 64 runs scored, and 7 stolen bases, marking an impressive return to the major leagues in his first year.
Last year, Tauchman played 109 games, recording a batting average of .248 (74 hits in 298 at-bats), 7 home runs, 29 RBIs, and an OPS of .723. Despite his valuable contributions as the team's fourth outfielder, opportunities to play diminished due to the growth of younger outfielders on the team, and he received a non-tender release notice after the season.
After proving his worth over two years, Tauchman partnered with the Chicago White Sox. Manager Wil Benavides noted, 'Tauchman's strength is consistency. He is a solid defender and base runner who knows how to control his zone at the plate. He is a player we can trust and rely on every day.'
Director General Chris Getz also commented, 'Tauchman is a high-caliber player at the plate who gets on base a lot. Just look at how many pitches he forces when he steps in the batter's box. He’s a welcome addition to our lineup.'
Tauchman received a starting opportunity as the first right fielder as soon as he returned to the major leagues.
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