The birth of a Korean ML shortstop from the first round! 2.5 billion down payment → big league in just 3 years → first hit was timely “My mother asked Choi Ji-man to get his autograph”

 Another Korean player was born in the major leagues. The main character is Pittsburgh shortstop Alica Williams (24).

Williams recently met with Star News at PNC Park in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA and said, “Her mother is Korean,” and revealed that she is of Korean descent.

Born in San Diego, California, USA, Williams was born to a Caucasian father and a Korean mother. Like other American children, he grew up enjoying various sports such as baseball and basketball from a young age, and showed his talent for baseball early, with a career batting average of 0.374 in high school.

As a result, he was selected by the New York Yankees in the 32nd round of the 2017 Major League Baseball Draft, but chose to go to Arizona State University (ASU) instead of becoming a pro. This university is considered a prestigious college baseball in the United States as it is the alma mater of Barry Bonds (59), the major league home run king, and Andre Idia (42), former LA Dodgers outfielder.

Alika, who has been the team’s starting shortstop since her freshman year of college, participated in 55 games that year, displaying an impressive batting average of 0.280 and 20 RBIs. His performance in the 2019 season, his sophomore year, was better. He had a .333 batting average, 4 home runs, 53 RBIs and 9 stolen bases. The 2020 season, his junior year, played only 17 games due to Corona 19. However, his performance in his freshman and sophomore years was enough to earn Tampa Bay’s selection in the first additional round (37th overall) of the major league rookie draft that year. At the time, the contract he received was 1.85 million dollars (approximately 2.48 billion won).

Williams, who skipped the rookie league after advancing to the pros in 2021 and started with single A as a native of the first round, experienced up to triple A that year, participating in a total of 73 games with a batting average of 0.267, 5 home runs and 46 RBIs.

Last year, his second year as a professional, he played all 96 games from single-A to triple-A, posting a batting average of 0.249, 19 homers, and 62 RBIs. Williams, who started this season at Double-A, was traded from Tampa Bay to Pittsburgh in early June. After being assigned to Triple A, he made his major league debut on the 26th of last month (Korean time) after posting a season batting average of 0.268, 11 homers and 43 RBIs. It was a feat achieved in just three seasons after his professional career.

When asked how he felt at the time, Williams expressed, “The joy I felt when something I wished for since childhood became a reality was indescribably great.” In particular, it was his hometown of San Diego where he made his major league debut. At that time, his parents, as well as his brothers and friends, came to the stadium to congratulate him.스포츠토토

Coincidentally, his big league debut was made as a substitute for Choi Ji-man (32, now San Diego), who was a Pittsburgh teammate at the time. In the beginning of the 7th inning, Choi Man-man came out as a pinch hitter, and Williams was put in as a shortstop when he was replaced with the start of defense at the end of the 7th inning.

His first at-bat in his debut came after one out in the top of the ninth inning with the team trailing 1-5. The opposing pitcher was Josh Hader (29, San Diego), the best finisher in the league who could easily throw a ball with a speed of 100 miles (about 161 km). However, Alika got a walk after a close battle that went all the way to the 11th pitch. This is the part where you can see his tenacity of not giving up easily.

His first big league hit was against Philadelphia on the 30th of last month, the 4th game after his debut. He started as shortstop at batting eighth and hit a heavy hit from second out and third base in the bottom of the fifth inning with a 6–4 lead, bringing it up to an RBI. Choi Ji-man, who played together at the time, congratulated Williams with a round of applause at the dugout when Williams hit.

Regarding this, Williams said, “I met Choi Ji-man for the first time when I was in Triple A after being traded to Pittsburgh.” He did a lot, which gave me a lot of strength. After debuting in the major leagues, even when the first hit wasn’t easy, Choi Ji-man told me a lot of good things.”

He continued, “When I called my mother and told her that Choi Ji-man was coming to Triple A for a rehab game, she said, ‘Get his autograph.'” “My mother is a fan of Choi Ji-man. It’s a pity,” he said.

Williams is a shortstop who is the center of the infield, but he also has talent at bat. Although his power is low, his ability to hit the ball is well received. Pittsburgh coach Derek Shelton (53) also said in an interview with local media, “Due to the team’s circumstances, he also plays as second baseman, but Alika is a shortstop. His defensive ability is highly evaluated. His contact ability is also good.” Evaluated. As of the 17th, his batting average is 0.200 (10 hits in 50 at bats) and 4 RBIs in 21 games.

Williams said, “I am very happy and happy now that I am playing in the big leagues,” and expressed his aspirations. .