He got a new job just three days after his release. Will he be able to set a new record with 100 home runs in his new team.
Kiwoom Heroes announced the recruitment of Kim Dong-yeop on the 4th. Kim Dong-yeop, who was notified of his release by his former team Samsung Lions on the 1st, quickly saved a new team three days after his release.
“I’m glad to have the right-handed slugger that I need for my team,” Kiwoom said. “With the addition of Kim Dong-yeop, we can balance the left and right sides of the lineup to launch stronger and more structured attacks. As an experienced veteran player, I look forward to having a positive impact on young players in our team.”
Kim Dong-yeop graduated from Cheonan Bukil High School in 2009 and moved to the U.S. where he played for a minor league team under the Chicago Cubs. After returning to Korea, he was nominated by the SK Wyverns (current SSG Landers) in the ninth round of the 2016 rookie draft.
He displayed stellar performance at SK in the 2017 and 2018 seasons, earning a reputation as a slugger. He had 109 hits, 22 homers and 70 RBIs in the 2017 season, and 106 hits, 27 homers and 76 RBIs in the 2018 season, which is not envious of anyone else. He led the SK lineup along with Choi Jeong, Romak, and Han Yu-sum.
Then, Kim Dong-yeop wore the Samsung uniform through the KBO’s first triangular trade conducted by Kiwoom, Samsung and SK after the end of the 2018 season. He played only 60 games in the 2019 season, but he hit 0.312 129 hits, 20 homers, 74 RBIs and 60 runs in 115 games in the 2020 season, surpassing the batting average of 300 for the first time since his KBO league debut.
Since then, however, he has started to draw a downward curve. He had a batting average of 0.238 44 hits, four homers, 24 RBIs and 20 runs in 69 games in the 2021 season, a batting average of 0.221 21 hits, two homers, four RBIs and nine runs in 30 games in the 2022 season, and a batting average of 0.255 42 hits, five homers, 18 RBIs and 20 runs in 69 games in the 2023 season. 안전놀이터
The same is true of this season. He had a batting average of 0.111 in eight games, two hits, two RBIs and one run scored. Kim Dong-yeop, who had been playing in the second division since April 9 when he moved down to the second division, was listed in the first division entry before a match against the KT Wiz in Daegu on July 28. It was his first call-up in 111 days.
Coach Park Jin-man also said, “I received reports that I am okay with hitting. Now our team lacks slugging capability. Kim Dong-yeop is a player that we need. He is not in his first or second year. He needs to overcome the burden. A player must produce results. Since he has a lot of experience and experience, he will overcome it well.” He expected that he would not be able to play in the first division after having no hit in four times at bat against the Daegu KT on July 28 and no hit in three times at the Jamsil LG Twins on July 30.
Kiwoom needed to recruit Kim Dong-yeop. Kiwoom ranked last in the league with 104 team home runs last season. The team was 81 points shorter than Samsung, which hit 185 home runs. No batter hit 20 home runs. Song Seong-moon had the most in his team with 19 home runs. Lee Ju-hyung and Choi Joo-hwan hit 13 home runs, and Kim Hye-sung and Ronnie Dawson hit 11. Actually, there were not enough hitters to expect.
Although Kim Dong-yeop has only 11 home runs in the last four years, he doesn’t know what he will show if he gets a chance.
Kim Dong-yeop has 92 home runs in total in the KBO. He hit 55 home runs when he was with the SK Wyverns and 37 home runs with the Samsung Lions. If he hits eight more, he will be able to garner 100 home runs. 100 home runs are definitely meaningful.
Will Kim Dong-yeop be able to complete the 100-home run puzzle while singing the song of resurrection at Kiwoom.
