I probably wouldn’t have been able to hit like this even when I was 28. 38-year-old veteran shortstop Kim Jae-ho is leading Doosan’s challenge to the top five by showing rejuvenating hits every day even though he can retire. Doosan’s junior infielders were not surprised by this and responded, ‘Because it’s senior Kim Jae-ho.’토토사이트
Jae-ho Kim started as shortstop twice in the 10th game of the season against Samsung in the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League held at Jamsil Stadium in Seoul on the 8th and performed well with 2 hits (1 home run) and 3 RBIs in 5 at-bats, supporting the team’s comeback victory.
Kim Jae-ho, who warmed up with a foul fly to first base in the first inning and a ground ball to shortstop in the fourth, hit a come-from-behind two-run gun with one out and one on first base in the fifth inning to make the score 2-2. With the ball count of 1B-1S, he hit a curve (121km) driven to the center of Samsung starting pitcher Kim Dae-woo and passed the left fence slightly. It was the 3rd gun of the season, coming in 9 games since the Gocheok Kiwoom match on August 24th.
Kim Jae-ho’s bat didn’t stop. He appeared on first and second base with one out and one out in the eighth inning, when the score was down 5-7, and hit a chaser’s one-run double against Samsung’s veteran pitcher Gyu-min Woo, putting Samsung behind by one point. This was a valuable, timely hit that supported the comeback victory in the 9th inning.
Jae-ho Kim said after the game, “It was a really tough game, but I’m glad I won. “At the end, we were able to win because the young players did their part,” he said. “In the case of the home run, I expected there would be two fastballs and a breaking ball. He left his impressions, saying, “He swung the bat with confidence, and I think the timing was right so he went over.”
As a genius shortstop, Kim Jae-ho prevented runs with his skillful decisions on defense. In the 7th inning, when he was down 5-6, with 1 out and runners on 2nd and 3rd base, he made a jumping catch on Lee Jae-hyun’s ground ball, then quickly headed home and caught a strong run from a runner on third base who was rushing home.
Jae-ho Kim said, “The bounce of the batted ball was large in a forward defense situation. He showed a humble attitude, saying, “He threw hard with the idea of throwing half a beat faster, but catcher (Jang) Seung-hyeon handled it well.”
Jae-ho Kim is 38 years old this year. Born in 1985, he joined the professional ranks as a first-round pick by Doosan in the 2004 rookie draft and is already in his 20th year.
But to him, age is just a number. He appeared in 68 games and boasted a rejuvenated batting average of .300, 40, 7, 3 home runs, 22 RBI, 26 runs, and an OPS of .886. September is a month when even young players experience physical overload, but his batting average in the last 10 games is .401.9, and he even shows off his slugging ability, hitting 3 home runs in 4 years since 2019 (4 home runs).
Doosan’s young infielders looked at Kim Jae-ho’s No Ik-jang indifferently. Because he was a genius shortstop, it was already expected that he would be good at baseball even at the late age of 38.
Park Gye-beom, who caused the third baseman’s walk-off error on the 8th, said, “We always knew senior (Kim) Jae-ho as a good baseball player. In some ways, it is natural that he is doing so well now. “I don’t think he’s that surprised because I think he’ll always do well if he just keeps playing,” he said.
Jae-ho Kim gave Doosan fans credit for his career high at the age of 38. He said, “We were able to win thanks to the many fans who came to celebrate the Red Duro Series and supported us until the end. “We will focus on tomorrow’s double header and bring victory to everyone,” he promised.