Kang recorded a .617 OPS with 10 home runs, 24 RBI and -0.6 WAR in 185 plate appearances this year. While he did hit well immediately after being activated off the injured list in June, he fell into another rut recently, going 1-22 in his last 10 games played. Kang has one of the worst strikeout (32.4%) and swinging strike (16%) rates in the National League.
Kang was barred from entering the country in 2017 after being arrested for drunk driving in South Korea in Dec. 2016- his third such offense. After securing a work visa in 2018, he made a major league cameo in the final series of the season in Cincinnati.