Thomas Hatch, the new starting pitcher for the SSG Landers / Courtesy of SSG Landers
Korea will be the fourth country for American pitcher Thomas Hatch to play in, as the right-hander previously plied his trade in the United States, Canada and Japan.
Along the way, the new starting pitcher for the SSG Landers in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) has learned a valuable lesson that he tries to apply to his life on and off the field.
"Honestly, through the years, I've learned that just going day to day is the best, not trying to look so far into the future," Hatch told Yonhap News Agency on Wednesday at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul, minutes after throwing his first bullpen session with his new team. "It's easier to handle a tough game like this if you just focus on the day at hand. Today, I was able to throw a good bullpen and then a few days down the road, it'll be to hopefully lead the team to a victory out on the mound. So I think (if you take) baby steps, big picture things will fall in place."
The Landers announced their signing of Hatch, 31, on Saturday and he is already traveling with the club while awaiting his work visa. He is replacing Mitch White, his former teammate with the Toronto Blue Jays in Major League Baseball (MLB). Hatch has another ex-Blue Jays teammate in the KBO, the Lotte Giants starter Jeremy Beasley.
