Can you believe the #1 KBO ejectee is an 0-0 pitcher in Triple-A
The first foreigner to be ejected from the KBO is now…
Robert Duggar, 29, Las Vegas Aviators, allowed two runs on six hits with six strikeouts and one walk in 4 1/3 innings of relief for the Triple-A Salt Lake Bees of the 2024 Minor League at Smith Ballpark in Salt Lake City, Utah, on Wednesday.
Dugger is the first foreign pitcher to be released from the KBO for the 2024 season. SSG Landers signed Dugger for a total of $900,000 before this season. However, he struggled in six appearances for SSG, going 3-3 with a 12.71 ERA. Unusually, SSG decided to trade Dugger in April.
The pitcher SSG signed to replace Dugger was Drew Anderson. Anderson proved to be the right choice, going 8-1 with a 3.11 ERA in 15 games. Duggar, on the other hand, was released relatively quickly, signing a minor league contract with the Oakland Athletics in May to return to the United States.
Duggar is 4-0 with a 4.95 ERA in 13 games to date. His .238 batting average and 1.40 WHIP in 60 innings are actually better than his numbers in the KBO. In the SSG, he had a 0.366 BABIP and a 2.07 WHIP. However, as his ERA shows, Duggar is not a run-scoring pitcher.
He has only four games with more than three earned runs, and in those four games, he has two four-run games and one each of six and seven 안전놀이터 earned runs. He doesn’t have many games of five innings or more, so it’s not easy to manage his ERA. Still, it’s not a bad streak.
On July 6 against the Oklahoma City Club, he allowed six runs on seven hits (two homers) in five innings with five strikeouts and four walks, but the offense scored 11 runs. On July 1 against the Albuquerque Isotopes, he allowed seven runs on six hits (three homers) with two walks and three strikeouts in four innings of relief, but the starter had already given up six runs in three innings.
It was his return to the mound after a two-game bullpen stint. He did his job, throwing 75 pitches. He didn’t last five innings, so he didn’t get the win, but it was far from a loss as the team scored 10 runs.
This league is the Pacific Coast League. It’s also known for its ride-or-die minor leagues. It’s safe to say that Duggar benefits from this aspect. Still, it’s strange that he didn’t lose a game in 13 starts with an ERA of nearly five runs. Dugger had a breakout season in the U.S. after getting kicked out of South Korea after just one month.