2024 will likely be truly remembered as the year of Kim Do-young by baseball fans. Exploding his potential in the third year of the KBO League, he already even wrote “Kim Do-yeo” among the names of Kim Do-young on the list of MVP winners of the regular league. In the fall, he won his first Korean Series trophy. He also showed the brightest performance in the Premier 12 2024, proving that his stellar performance this season is no coincidence.
Kim Do-young, who graduated from Dongseong High School in Gwangju in 2022, received the first nomination from Kia. At that time, Kia was joined by Kim Do-young and Moon Dong-ju (Gwangju Jinheung High School) as the top two players in its senior year of high school. The choice for Kia was Kim Do-young. And Moon Dong-ju wore Hanwha’s uniform, which could have been nominated by the first team nationwide.
Fans called them “Moon Kim Dae-jeon,” comparing their performances in the professional leagues. Kim has a slight advantage in 2022 when they were rookies. However, as Moon recorded eight wins and eight losses with an ERA of 3.72 during the 2023 season in his second year, and won the gold medal as a member of the Hangzhou Asian Games, Moon has gained the upper hand again. Kim lost the first half of last year due to injury, failing to make the roster for the Hangzhou Asian Games.
In 2024, the third year of his career, however, Moon Kim Dae-jung has completely changed to Kim Do-young’s dominance. He became the first player in KBO league history to hit 10 home runs and 10 steals per month in April, and set various records throughout the season, creating a “Kim Do-young syndrome.” His final performance in the 2024 season was 0.347 with 38 home runs, 109 RBIs, 143 points, 40 steals, 0.420 on-base plus slugging percentage, 0.647. Unfortunately, he failed to achieve the 40-40 club goal by becoming the first Korean player to reach the 40-40 club due to lack of two home runs. He also has reserved the MVP of the regular league. He also had a low batting average of 0.235 (4 hits from 17 times at bat) in the Korean Series, but he also had a one-home run, five RBIs and an OPS of 0.821, contributing to KIA’s 12th win in the Korean Series.
For Kim Do-young, the final game schedule left for this season is Premier 12 2024. Even before the competition, foreign media also paid attention to him. MLB.COM, the official website of the 바카라사이트 Major League Baseball (MLB), introduced Kim Do-young as one of the eight players to pay attention to at the 2024 World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Premier 12 on the 8th (Korea time), saying, “Kim Do-young had an amazing 2024 season and contributed to the team’s victory in the Korean Series (KS) against the Samsung Lions. Kim Do-young ended the season with 38 home runs and 40 home runs, setting a record of 30 home runs-30 stolen bases as the youngest KBO player. He also broke the record of being the youngest to score 100 points in a single season by scoring 100 points in 97 games. He explained, “It has changed the record of the youngest player to score 100 points in a single season, which was set by Doosan Bears coach Lee Seung-yeop, a KBO legend.” The World Baseball Softball Federation (WBSC), which hosts the Premier 12, also called Kim Do-young a “genius third baseman.”
Although the anticipated situation at home and abroad could have been a burden, Kim Do-young did not shrink at all and announced his genius to the world. In the final group match against Australia on the 18th, he also led Korea to a 5-2 victory with four RBIs, including a two-run shot.
Kim Do-young’s final report card for this year’s Premier 12 was a batting average of 0.417 (7 hits in 17 at-bats), three homers and 10 RBIs. She showed off her slugging instincts without hesitation, as evidenced by five hits (two doubles and three homers) out of seven hits in Antae. The OPS, which combines on-base plus slugging percentage, was a whopping 1.503.
He did not just attack well. Kim committed 30 errors in the KBO league this season. The figure was equivalent to atop in the league. However, he also excelled in defense in this year’s Premier 12. He displayed his outstanding ability to hit strong balls several times, erasing his weaknesses.
Although the Premier 12 is somewhat inferior to the World Baseball Classic (WBC), which involves a large number of incumbent major leaguers, there is no reason for Kim Do-young’s performance to be disparaged. The first home run of the tournament was Cuban Rivan Moinello, who ranked first in the Pacific League ERA (1.88), a Japanese professional baseball league. Kim Do-young, who led Korea to its first win by shooting multiple guns in the match against Cuba, remained silent against Japan (no hits in four times at bat) and the Dominican Republic (no hits in two times at bat), but he showed a decisive performance in the match against Australia, where Korea was able to achieve a successful finish by hitting three hits in four times at bat (one homer) and four RBIs.
Although the Korean team failed to bear the shock of losing its first game against Taiwan at this year’s championship, it suffered from elimination from the group league. However, it is a great achievement just to see that superstar Kim Do-young, who has conquered the KBO League, can play a central role in the international arena. In the 2026 WBC, one year and four months away, Kim Do-young is seen hitting home runs against major leaguers and going on a free-for-all basis. As such, the upcoming Premier 12 2024 has acquired a genius who will be responsible for the central batting line of the national team for the next 10 years.
