The Pittsburgh Pirates were dealt a massive blow on Thursday when a hard slide into second base by Chris Coghlan of the Chicago Cubs injured Pirates infielder Jung Ho Kang, fracturing his tibia and tearing his MCL.
https://twitter.com/BBTN/status/644652770847510528
Obviously, this isn’t good for the Pirates. In his rookie year, Kang was hitting .287/.355/.461 with 15 homers for Pittsburgh, playing third base and shortstop for the club.
Pittsburgh has dealt with plenty of injuries this year, missing both third baseman Josh Harrison and shortstop Jordy Mercer for chunks of the season. But Kang was there to fill in for both players and hold the fort down both defensively and offensively.
Both Harrison and Mercer are now healthy, but frankly, the two combined aren’t as good as Kang. Aramis Ramirez has been getting playing time at third since coming over from the Brewers, and he’s been a horror show defensively.
Being without Kang for the rest of the year is huge for the Pirates, who still have aspirations of overtaking the Cardinals for the NL Central crown and avoiding the NL Wild Card game.
