He slowed down for a while, but the trust of the head coach remains unchanged. This is the story of Kim Young-woong, a Samsung Lions.먹튀검증
Kim Young-woong was one of the hottest hitters in the KBO league early this season. He hit seven home runs through April since the opening of the regular season, and added six more in May, achieving his first double-digit home run since his professional debut.
Kim Young-woong, who joined Samsung as the third choice in the second round of 2022, did not show any significant performance in the first team until last year, but he revitalized Samsung’s batting lineup by bursting his potential early this season.
As such, the chances to participate in the event have increased significantly. Kim had 15 at-bats in 2022 and 103 at-bats last year, but he has already filled 300 at-bats (305 as of June 21) this year.
Compared to the early days of the season, Kim has seen his pace drop a little recently. In 17 games during the month of June, Kim played 13 times at bat, batting .213 with two home runs and seven RBIs. However, he garnered multi hits in two consecutive games against Samsung in Daegu from June 19 to June 20, and hit two long balls including one home run.
Coach Park Jin-man does not seem to be too worried about Kim Young-woong. “It is the first time this year that Kim Young-woong spends a full-time season (since his professional debut). As I have always said, he must be physically burdened,” Park said. “He must be experiencing a lot of how to cope with his physical loss when his condition deteriorates.”
It is also worth noting that Kim Young-woong’s batting sense has been gradually rising since the return of teammate Lee Jae-hyun. Lee Jae-hyun was called up to the first team on June 13 after being removed from the first team entry due to a hamstring injury on the 27th of last month, and Kim Young-woong’s six-game hit streak continued from the match against NC in Changwon on the 14th to SSG on the 20th.
“It is a good-faith competition. As Lee Jae-hyun has been doing well recently, I think Kim Young-woong’s concentration at bat will increase, and I think it has an upward effect (after Lee Jae-hyun’s return).”
Although it is necessary to control his condition or arrange his physical stamina depending on the situation, the head coach will continue to trust Kim and let him go for the rest of the season. “I think Kim’s batting pace has dropped to the point where his batting pace has dropped. I think it’s time for him to come up,” coach Park Jin-man said in anticipation of Kim’s rebound.