There was no justification for call-up, Bae Ji-hwan, the No. 1 big hitter in PIT Triple-A batting average, to stay in the big leaguethe second minor trip of the season

May 17, 2025

There was no justification for call-up, Bae Ji-hwan, the No. 1 big hitter in PIT Triple-A batting average, to stay in the big leaguethe second minor trip of the season
Pittsburgh Pirates Bae Ji-hwan went back to the minor leagues a week after re-entering the big leagues. AP Yonhap News



There was no justification for call-up, Bae Ji-hwan, the No. 1 big hitter in PIT Triple-A batting average, to stay in the big leaguethe second minor trip of the season
Nick Solak ranks first in the Triple-A International League batting average. AP Yonhap News
Pittsburgh Pirates Bae Ji-hwan was eventually relegated to the minor league again. The cause for staying was weak, and the alternative was clear.

Ahead of the first game of a three-game away series against the Philadelphia Phillies on the 17th (Korea time), the Pittsburgh club transferred the contract of Triple-A outfielder Nick Solak to the big league and sent outfielder Bae Ji-hwan to Triple-A instead. It also assigned outfielder Michael Hellman to put Solak on the 40-man roster" to announce the change in the roster.

Bae Ji-hwan, who was included in the opening roster of this season and went down to Triple-A after playing two games, was replaced by his predecessor Derek Shelton on the 10th and called up again to the Major League shortly after Don Kelly took office. Earlier in Indianapolis, he had a batting average of 0.258 (24 hits in 93 at-bats), one home run, six RBIs, 22 runs, six steals, and an OPS of 0.719 in 23 games.




However, after coming to the Major League, he did not show any significant progress in hitting. In five games, he played mostly as a pinch runner and started two games, with one hit in seven at-bats. His big league record this season is 0.091 (1 hit in 11 at-bats), one walk, five strikeouts and two steals in seven games.

As for Pittsburgh, it is highly likely that it judged that Bae Ji-hwan gave him enough opportunity. On top of that, Triple-A's outstanding big hitter was waiting.

There was no justification for call-up, Bae Ji-hwan, the No. 1 big hitter in PIT Triple-A batting average, to stay in the big leaguethe second minor trip of the season
Bae Ji-hwan only hit 1 for 11 in the major leagues. ImagesYonhap News
Solak, 30, is a utility man drafted by the New York Yankees in the second round of the 2016 draft and has had an erratic career going up and down the minors since his major league debut with the Texas Rangers in 2019. After repeatedly signing contracts with Lee, he signed an FA contract with Pittsburgh in December last year and entered the season in Triple-A.




In 32 games, he hit a batting average of 0.393 (44 hits in 112 at-bats), six home runs, 19 RBIs, 25 runs, 12 walks, 17 strikeouts, 4 steals, and OPS 1.077 to make the big league stage for the first time this season. Until this day, he ranked No. 1 in batting average and No. 2 in OPS in the Triple-A International League. It is an all-weather fielder who can also see the first, second and third bases even though he has a stable pioneer, a long shot, and his main position is outfield. Solak, who entered the Major League for the first time in two years since 2023, started the game as the sixth first baseman against Philadelphia and made a hit in his first at-bat.

Ahead of the game, Solak said, `I learned a lot from everything I've experienced while playing baseball. Some were not the best, but they instilled a great lesson in me and I could learn from it," he said, expressing his feelings about re-entering the big league.

Bae Ji-hwan may be called to the big leagues again, but the possibility of his release is growing as minor league options are almost exhausted.






This article was translated by Naver AI translator.