Kyle Hart (32), left-hander of the NC Dinos in the Korean pro baseball league, is aiming to win four gold medals as a pitcher for the first time in the history of foreign players. He would have been a strong candidate for MVP in a different year, but that is not the case this year. With the potential of Kim Do-young (21) exploding, Hart’s performance could have been somewhat buried, but he has begun racing as a rival and rival for MVP.스포츠토토
Hart led NC to a 13-6 complete victory and five consecutive wins with a quality start against Changwon Kiwoom on the 4th, six innings of one hit (one homer) and three walks, 12 strikeouts and one run. Twelve strikeouts were the most in an individual game. The only run he had was a solo home run hit by Kim Gun-hee in the fourth inning.
Through the fifth inning, Kiwoom had 10 strikeouts through 60 pitches, which was powerful enough. Kim Hye-seong, the flagship player of Kiwoom, also had a hard time hitting the heart ball by striking out three consecutive times at bat. He played five pitches evenly, focusing on fastballs with the maximum speed of 149 kilometers per hour in PTS: Cutter, two-seam, slider and change-up. All five pitches were highly accurate enough to be used as crystal balls to secure strikeouts. He clearly displayed weapons that could trick both left and right batters by banking on his left-handed batters’ outer slider and right-handed change-up. He was flawless in his control over the borderline as he used it extensively up, down, left and right.
Hart, who has won eight consecutive games since the game against SSG in Munhak on June 21, tied for first in this category along with Won Tae-in (Samsung) by garnering his 13th win (two losses) this season. He lowered his earned run average (ERA) from 2.35 to 2.31, and tied for first in this category by increasing his strikeouts from first to 169. In addition, he was ranked first in four categories of pitchers with a winning percentage of .867. Although it is not an official title, he is also ranked first in WHIP (1.01) and hit rate (1.212).
Only two pitchers have achieved four gold medals in the KBO league. From 1989 to 1991, Haitai Sun Dong-yeol won multiple wins, earned run average (ERA), strikeout and won in four categories for the third consecutive year. In 2011, Yoon Seok-min of KIA became the second player to win four titles. Since then, no four pitchers have won four titles in the past 12 years.
No foreign pitcher has won four gold medals. Last year, NC`s Eric Peddy became the first foreign pitcher to win the Triple Crown by ranking first in three categories: multiple wins (20 wins), ERA (2.00) and strikeouts (209), but failed to win four gold medals by ranking fifth in winning percentage (.769). Hart is close to winning four gold medals, which even Peddy could not.
He had a three-week hiatus due to aftereffects of suffering from a cold in August, but immediately after returning to the team, he became a winning pitcher for three consecutive games and added 26 strikeouts. At once, he succeeded in multiple wins and regained No. 1 spot with strikeouts, and is now close to winning four titles. As James Nail (KIA), who ranks second in ERA, was out for the season after being hit on the chin by a pitch, ends at 2.53, and as long as Hearts do not collapse due to massive loss of runs, he is highly likely to rank No. 1 in this category. He is also in a stable position as he has widened the gap with No. 2 Heysus to nine, and his winning rate is also more than 3 percent higher than Park Young-hyun (KT. 833). The biggest variable is multiple wins, but he only needs to lag behind Won Tae-in. Even joint No. 1 player can win four titles.
The four-time pitcher was an MVP guarantee check. Sun Dong-yeol from 1989 to 1990, and Yoon Seok-min from 2011 won four times as a pitcher and became an MVP. However, in 1991, he lost the MVP to Jang Jong-hoon, a young slugger. In the same year, Jang beat four-time pitcher Sun Dong-yeol by ranking first in five batting categories: home run, hits, RBI, scoring and slugging percentage.
Chances are high that Hearts will be in a similar situation this year. If it had been in previous years, he would have been inferior to the MVP in this season, but Kim Do-young is in full swing. Kim has a batting average of 344 percent in 126 games (167 hits in 485 at-bats) with 35 homers, 98 RBIs, 126 runs and 36 steals, a .419 slugging percentage. He has topped the list in two categories: scoring and hitting percentage, but he ranks first in OPS, second in homers, third in batting average and on-base percentage, fourth in hits, and sixth in RBIs and steals.
Considering that it is a season of riding and pitching, it is worth giving a higher value to Hearts’ four gold medals. However, Kim has been drawing great attention throughout the season. He has recorded 30 homers and 30 steals in the youngest and smallest game in history, 10 homers and 10 steals per month for the first time, and a natural cycling hit with four at-bats for the first time. He was also named the monthly MVP in April and June. His team, Kia, is also poised to win the regular season title as it has raced to the top spot. On the other hand, the NC Dinosaurs of Hearts are in ninth place, making fall baseball difficult.
Hearts need a stronger impact. Last year’s MVP, Peddy, drew attention with 20 wins, 200 strikeouts and an earned run average close to one point. With an additional pitching in up to five games during the remaining season, Hearts can expect 200 strikeouts but cannot win 20. An earned run average of one point range is also difficult as he can keep 23 ⅓ innings scoreless. Realistically, it is difficult to achieve an impact that can surpass Kim Do-young, but the scarcity of four-time pitcher should be recognized even more in the season of pitching and pitching. Attention is focusing on whether Hearts’ four-time pitching pace, which made Kim Do-young feel uneasy in the MVP race, will continue to win the last season.