Song Sung-moon of the San Diego Padres, recovering from a radiative muscle injury, is close to entering normal orbit.
San Diego manager Craig Stammen met with reporters at the Peoria Sports Complex, the club’s training site in Peoria, Arizona, on the 23rd (Korea Standard Time), saying, “I played five innings of shortstop in the Triple-A practice game today. “I’m going to play an exhibition game in the Major League tomorrow,” he said, explaining Song’s situation.
Song Sung-moon said in an interview with reporters earlier, “I played about seven at-bats in a minor league practice game. “I’ve played defense before, but today was the first time I’ve played at bat in practice,” he explained.
사진 확대 Song Sung-moon played his first game since recovering from the injury. Photo = MK Sports DB
Minor league games played at the practice stadium during the camp are not official games, so regulations can be changed arbitrarily. Players who need to play at-bats, such as Song Sung-moon, sometimes play at-bats regardless of their batting order. This is why I was able to bat seven times.
Song Sung-moon was replaced during a Cactus League game against the Seattle Mariners on the 6th due to an abnormality in his right side. It was an injury that was injured during training in January and took four weeks off, so the rehabilitation progressed faster than in January and eventually reached the stage of actual digestion.
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Song Sung-moon said, “It was awkward because it was my first game after getting hurt, but I think I played in a good mood because I played healthy for the first time in a long time.”
San Diego will play the final Cactus League game with the Seattle Mariners, who share the Peoria Sports Complex a day later. Song Sung-moon will check his sense of action through this game.
사진 확대 Song starts the season on the injured list. Photo = MK Sports DB
Of course, you can’t prepare for the season with just this one game. Coach Stammen evaluated Song Sung-moon’s return to action as a “good step forward,” but predicted that he would “start the season on the injured list.”
Stammen said, “I’m putting them on the injured list because I can’t play enough games to be comfortable even if I include them on the opening roster. “I’ll play a rehabilitation game in El Paso (Triple A) and I’ll be back at Petco Park soon,” he said.
According to Stammen, Song Sung-moon will remain in Arizona for one more minor league practice game and then move to San Diego to play the season opener together.
Stammen said, “I’m planning to call the opener to feel the atmosphere of the big league opening game and call him by his name. After that, I will move for a rehabilitation game,” he said, explaining Song’s schedule.
[Pioria (USA) = KIM JAE HO, MK Sports Correspondent]