1-0 at the end of the 11th inning when the team was caught in a tight lead. Kiwoom Heroes’ infielder Song Seong-moon’s pitch flew in a huge trajectory toward the fence in the middle of the Gocheok Sky Dome. It was a moment of crisis that could lead to a triple. However, Kim Ji-chan was in the outfield of the Samsung Lions. Kim Ji-chan, who chased the team to the “Warning Track,” jumped and caught the ball. He kept his team’s 1-0 victory on Tuesday.토토사이트
Kim Ji-chan’s good defense was not the only day. In the game against the Doosan Bears at Pohang Baseball Stadium on the 20th, he overcame the crisis of getting on base by catching a big hit by leadoff hitter Yang Eui-ji with his fast feet in the top of the ninth inning with a 3-0 lead. In the game against the Lotte Giants held at Samsung Lions Park in Daegu on the 23rd, he showed a similar good defense, overcoming the crisis of tying the game with 3-2 and two outs and third base.
After two stellar defense, Kim Ji-chan strongly hit the fence and collapsed. Thanks to Kim Ji-chan’s hustle play, which did not spare himself despite the fact that the fence was in front of him, Samsung continued to lead and win consecutive games at the end of the game.
They were not necessarily the first year outfielders. Kim Ji-chan, who had been active in the infield for the past four years since joining the team in 2020, has turned into an outfielder ahead of this season. Up until the beginning of this spring camp, Kim was classified as a second baseman, but he was deployed to defend outfielders (middle field) in earnest from the end of this camp, and has completely changed his position to center field during the regular season. He seemed to have some difficulty in judging batting at the beginning, but soon took advantage of his fast-paced strengths to settle in the main center field and take charge of his team’s outfield defense.
Kim Ji-chan’s true value is not limited to defense. He also stands out in offense and baserunning. This season, Kim Ji-chan had a batting average of 0.311 (126 hits in 405 times at bat). If the team narrows down the gap to the second half of the season, he is playing his role as the No. 1 hitter with a batting average of 0.351 and an on-base percentage of 0.441. He is also enjoying a career-high season with 37 stolen bases. He ranks fourth in the league after Cho Ha-haeng (59), Jeong Su-bin (46), and Hwang Seong-bin (41), but has the highest success rate (92.5 percent, three failed attempts) among players who have recorded more than 40 steals. He is actively engaged in offense and defense.
In an interview with this newspaper about the introduction of center field at the beginning of the season, Kim Ji-chan smiled, saying, “I have to do well like Park Hae-min.” Park Hae-min was a key center fielder at Samsung until 2021 and showed off the leadoff of the Hota Jun people. Now, Kim Ji-chan is supporting Samsung’s outfield and batting lineups.
Prior to the season, Kim Ji-chan made commitment to play hard for a long time without injury and taking advantage of the short stature of the Automatic Ball-Strike System (ABS). By keeping his promise before the season, he is leading Samsung in the second half of the year.