[스포티비뉴스=고척, 김태우 기자] It was a home run that made everyone believe their eyes. Although it is not a small stadium, the batted balls flew as if there were no limits. Due to the structure of the dome stadium, the ball was forced to fall, but Kim Do-young (21, KIA)’s ninth home run of the season left a strong impression on all KBO League fans.
It was an amazing home run. There were many powerful sluggers who used Gocheok Dome as their home, such as Byung-ho Park and Yasiel Puig, but I barely remember a home run that hit the roof at the top of the electronic display board. What was even more surprising was that it came from Kim Do-young’s hand, not the typical heavy hitter’s style. Kim Do-young said after the game that it was not a big deal, saying, “I definitely felt that it was a good hit,” but it couldn’t have happened if there wasn’t something special about Kim Do-young’s hitting.
Kim Do-young hit a whopping 9 home runs in April alone. In the history of the Tigers franchise, only one player hit nine home runs in the month of April: Tracy Sanders in 1999. Kim Do-young can break this record if he hits one more home run during the remainder of April. In the league home run rankings, he is tied for second place after Hanyu Island (SSG, 10). So what created this monstrous home run?
Doyoung Kim calmly explains the process. First of all, it is the batting form. Even while rehabilitating a fractured finger ahead of this season, Kim Do-young made some improvements to his batting form. To be more specific, he changed his standing posture. Kim Do-young’s original stance is not that wide. However, the wider I spread, the better I could hit, so I unconsciously kept spreading my legs wider. As a result, there were side effects such as having the upper body slouch, it was physically difficult, and problems arose, such as ups and downs depending on the width of the stance. Even though he was in good form, it was difficult for him to maintain it all year long.
So Doyoung Kim adjusted his stance to create a form that would allow him to hit more comfortably. Doyoung Kim says that the effect is definitely there. Kim Do-young said, “I am standing comfortably and gathering strength all at once when I hit the ball.” Last year, I felt like I was losing stamina during the game after hitting once, but that’s not the case now. He could be the decisive driving force behind the batting moving forward without any ups and downs throughout April.
With this changed form, even the zone was changed. Kim Do-young is basically a hitter who views the zone a little wider and tries to hit aggressively. The style is similar this year, but there are differences. He tried to set his own zone according to various circumstances, including the introduction of the ABS system. He said things weren’t going well at the beginning of the season, but he’s kind of in his zone now. Kim Do-young said, “More than anything, I gained my own respect. So baseball became more comfortable. “I think it’s really important,” he said. “I think I hit the ball as hard as possible from the front when it enters the zone I set up like that.” If you place the point in front, there may be more missed swings, but that is not the case. The swing and miss rate is similar to last year. Kim Do-young also looked back and realized that there were not as many missed swings as expected.
The launch angle was not intentionally increased. I’m not even conscious of it. But as a result, the ball naturally started to float. It is not something that happened yesterday or today that Kim Do-young’s batting speed is fast. He was originally a player who often hit balls exceeding 170 km/h. However, there were quite a few cases where the launch angle was about 15 to 20 degrees and the ball rushed only in front of the fence, but this year, as the launch angle increased, the number of home runs compared to fly balls increased rapidly. The home run on the 23rd also had a launch angle of over 30 degrees. The hitting speed is already fast, but since the launch angle has been increased, it goes even further. Kim Do-young also explained, “I didn’t intentionally increase the launch angle, but I have the feeling that balls that didn’t go over last year will go over this year.”
What’s scarier is that this monster isn’t just a player who’s good at hitting home runs. He also has the quickest feet in the league. He has already stolen 10 bases. The consensus among experts is that when it comes to physical speed alone, he competes with the best in the league. As a result, achieving a major record is just around the corner. He achieves 10 home runs and 10 stolen bases simultaneously in a particular month. We’ve already stolen bases, we just need to hit one more home run.
This is a feat that no player who has played in the KBO League has been able to accomplish. Coach Lee Jong-beom, who is also synonymous with the hot-tasting team, has never recorded 10 home runs and 10 stolen bases in a month at the same time. The same was true for Eric Thames, who joined the first 40-40 (2015) club in KBO League history. At the time, Thames had 9 home runs and 5 stolen bases in April, 9 home runs and 8 stolen bases in May, 4 home runs and 5 stolen bases in June, 8 home runs and 6 stolen bases in June, 8 home runs and 6 stolen bases in July, and 8 home runs and 8 stolen bases in August. Stealing bases, recorded 8 home runs and 7 stolen bases in September. Even Thames couldn’t do 10-10. Maybe we will be lucky enough to see with our own eyes a record that is almost certain to be released again.
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