Mike Tuckman (32) of the Chicago Cubs of Major League Baseball (MLB) has hit his first home run of the season.
Tuckman batted leadoff in the first inning of Chicago’s home game against the Baltimore Orioles today (Nov. 19), driving a fastball from starter Dean Kremer over the left field fence. It was Tuckman’s maiden home run of the season, and coincidentally, it came the day after the Eagles announced the signing of Nick Williams (29).스포츠토토
Tuckman was particularly dominant in the early going of today’s game. In the top of the first inning, he caught Anthony Santander’s fly ball with one out for Baltimore and threw out Austin Hayes at third base. It was a two-run play, as he single-handedly prevented a run from scoring and then promptly scored a run himself.
Mike Tuckman is congratulated after his home run. Photo = AP Yonhap
Tuckman, who played in all 144 games for Hanwha last year and posted a .795 OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage), was not re-signed by Hanwha after the season and opted to head to the United States. He signed a minor league deal with the Cubs this January, and eventually earned a call-up on May 19.
With Cody Bellinger injuring his left knee and needing a center fielder, Tuckman, who was “bombing” Triple-A with an OPS of 0.870 at the time, got the call to the big leagues.
And Tuckman has continued to perform well in MLB, batting .282 with a .767 OPS, not being demoted to Triple-A when Bellinger returned, and even hitting his first home run of the season today.
However, despite hitting a home run today, Tuckman has been struggling lately. His OPS in May was a whopping .862, but his bat has cooled off to a .702 mark in June. Even in this three-game series against Baltimore, he’s 1-for-7 with no hits except for today’s home run.
It will be interesting to see if Tuckman, who is on the borderline between MLB and Triple-A, can survive the season in the big leagues.